Excavations undertaken in 1861 reveal the priory's buildings were situated around a cloister to the south of the church; the refectory occupied the south range, and two chapter houses occupied spaces to the east of the cloister.

[1] Of the original 12th-century priory buildings, only the foundations of the church and the lower section of the tower remain; this is due to large scale rebuilding works done around 1820.

[4] As primary beneficiaries, the Gresley family would retain influence over the priory over the following centuries.

In the year 1245, a later William de Gresley gifted the advowson of the nearby Church of Lullington, Derbyshire to the Prior and his heirs in-return for "all the benefits and prayers which should henceforth take place in the conventual church of Gresley, for ever.

[5] In 1291, Sir Geoffrey's grandson, another Geoffrey de Gresley assigned lands to the priory in the parish of Castle Gresley; in the following years he made arrangements for one canon of the priory to sing mass for the soul of his wife Anneys.

[5] It was not, however, until 1339 that Roger Northburgh, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield, sanctioned the mortmain; he, however, demanded in return that the priors pay a pension of 2 Marks a year to the vicars at Lichfield Cathedral, and that the Prior and all his successors should travel to the Chapter House of the Cathedral within 6 days of their election in-order to "take an oath on the Gospels as to the faithful payment of the pension".

[5] The cause of this action is unclear and open to debate: had there been some discrepancies in the priory's financial affairs?

[5] Having had only 4 brethren in the early 14th century, the Priory appears to have remained small through the 15th century: as in February 1493, following the death of the Prior John Smyth, the sub-prior, Robert Mogge, had to write to the Bishop and ask him to directly appoint a new prior as they had insufficient numbers to elect one themselves; The Bishop simply appointed the sub-prior, Robert Mogge, as Prior.

for alms to the poor) left the clear annual value at £31 6s (equivalent to approx 3 years of the average craftsman wages[6] ).