Clanfield is a village about eight miles SW of Witney and is bordered to the E by the Black Bourton Brook and by the Broadwell Brook to the S. The church lies to the N of the village and originally consisted of a 13thc coursed limestone rubble building with a chancel, a nave, and a W tower added in the early 14thc. The church was extensively restored and altered between 1879-80, when the nave was partially rebuilt and the N chapel, the S porch and the N aisle were added to the structure. Romanesque sculpture survives on the reset S doorway; other Romanesque features consist of the chancel arch and the N arcade, both heavily restored, if not rebuilt completely.

The Domesday Survey records that in 1086 'Chenefelde' was held by Payne of Clanfield, being Roger of Ivry tenant-in-chief. The manor valued £7. Clanfield, with its church, was given in 1199/1200 by William de Westbury to Ralph de Hareng, who probably granted the church to Elstow Abbey (Bedfordshire) during the next few years.

The chancel arch resembles, and may be influenced by, the style of the crossing arches at the nearby church of Bampton. However, it is fully restored. The W angle rolls of the second order may have been replaced for the slim nook-shafts.