Though the crocketed spire on the W tower is 15^th c., the rest of the tower, the nave with its S aisle, and the chancel are of the 13^th century. Also of 15^th c. date are the S chapel off the chancel and the S porch. There was some restoration work here in 1865 and again, under C. H. Fowler, in 1887. The narrow W window in the W tower is Romanesque.

Though there are entries for Barkston in the Domesday Book, there is no mention of a church here in 1086. However, there was a church here by the mid-12^th century as demonstrated by a record of a disagreement between the incumbents of Barkston and nearby Honington over the payment of church offerings by the tenants of the priory of Stixwold on land the nuns owned in Honington. This led to a settlement between the churches of Honington and Barkston. Barkston was to receive the tenant’s wax-scot (a duty paid to the church for candles) at the feast of All Saints as well as a secondary mortuary fee (see Owen).

Despite the weathered conditions of the stone, this is a superbly complete Romanesque window. The form of the capitals indicates a date in the 1170s or '80s (RB).