St Laurence and All Saints is a Grade I listed[1] medieval church in the parish of Eastwood, Essex, England, near to Southend-on-Sea.

To the east, the churchyard borders on the wire fence at the boundary of the airport with aircraft regularly landing close to the church.

[2] Eastwood took its name from its situation on the eastern side of the woods and parkland of Rayleigh and Thundersley which were part of the Great Forest of Essex.

[1] It is evident that there was a church at Eastwood before that date; this was probably the present Norman nave with a small apsidal chancel.

At some time, the east wall of the north aisle had cracked badly and been repaired very roughly by Tudor brickwork above the window.

[6] The records show that in the early 17th century the church was in a ruinous state; this was borne out when the old exterior plastering was stripped off.

[4] The church stands within a large churchyard containing monuments including chest tombs dating back to the 18th century, with 20th-century extensions to the north containing several war graves.

In the Burial Register he is described as a "Traveller aged 42" – "This man known as the King of the Gypsies was interred in the presence of a vast concourse of spectators".

[2] The small tower, which is 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) square, has a timber-framed and shingled upper part, with a broach spire, which was restored in the 20th century.

[1] The chancel arch is 14th-century, plain with no mouldings and traces of an earlier roof gable above it, and preserving two sawn-off ends of the rood beam.

[15] Before the altar are 18th-century tombs of the Vassal family, former owners of Cockethurst Farm, and a brass effigy of Thomas Burroughs dated 1600.

The angles of two columns have been flattened to give a view of the altar to the ringer in the tower and the easternmost arch has a curiously chamfered portion, the purpose of which is uncertain.

A hagioscope or squint has been cut in a very simple manner through the angle of the chancel wall giving a view of the high altar from the south aisle.

The rolls of King Edward 1st show that, when he was hunting in the district, he granted a pardon to a criminal at Eastwood who had stolen three pigs.

[10] The north door was repaired and re-hung as the entrance to the new Choir Vestry in 1966 using locally made bricks and tiles of Tudor decoration.

The west window has modern stained glass from 1978 by Francis Skeat depicting the life of Samuel Purchas geographer and writer and Eastwood's most notable incumbent.

[27] The proposed move of the church would have required the creation of a "chassis" underneath the walls of the building to turn it into a "railway carriage".

A track would have been laid, supported by concrete piles, to enable the building to be moved and lowered into its final position.

[30] At a public meeting held on 24 November, organised by Friends of the Earth, protesters were "overwhelmingly" of the view that the church should not be moved despite the council's support for the plans and the employment that would be generated by the airport expansion.

This was rejected by local councillors, who suggested that the runway could have been extended at the northern end by putting the railway into a tunnel.

Andrew Derrick, inspector of historic buildings at English Heritage, said: "We are very concerned about plans to move the church.

"[33] In January 2002, in the face of continuing protests, Roger Campbell claimed that the airport could face closure if its expansion plans failed[34] but, after a meeting between the church leaders and airport authorities, churchwarden Richard Huband reassured protesters that there would be no disturbance to graves should the move go ahead.

Any decision on moving the church will have to go through the local planning authority, but being Grade I listed will make a difference on how people view the building.

He also criticised the rules which prevented local councillors public announcing their views on controversial planning applications.

[44] In February 2003, the local Leigh-on-Sea town council voted to support the airport's expansion plans "on the proviso that disruption to St. Laurence church was minimised by moving, not demolishing it.

"[45] Shortly afterwards, consultants appointed by the airport arranged a meeting with English Heritage to discuss the feasibility of moving the church.

had given consent in principle to plans for a major expansion of the airport including a new terminal, control tower and railway station, together with a new hotel.

[54] The new owners said that they "would work with the local council to discuss ways of developing the airport's potential, including the possibility of an extended runway which could help meet the undoubted demand for European business and leisure travel".

This would be mitigated by the improved church entrance and the lack of passing vehicle traffic which will provide an overall enhancement to the tranquility of the area.

[57] On 20 January 2010, Southend Council's Development Control Committee approved the runway extension plan although the recommendation was sent to the Communities Secretary John Denham for review.