Embellishments to the long nave roof and the apsidal chancel were made in the first half of the 14th century in the Decorated style. After the dissolution in 1540 most of the claustral buildings and the Lady Chapel were quarried for their materials but the Abbey Church was sold to the parishioners for pound;453. Changes made since then to the internal configuration have developed to reflect contemporary styles of devotion, currently of the Anglo-Catholic persuasion.

Lying at the southern edge of the old town, the Abbey quietly dominates the land and skyline with its long nave and ldquo;probably the largest and finest Romanesque tower in Englandrdquo; (Pevsner). Vestiges of its social domination can be deduced from the layout of the streets and buildings, and the occasional relic; the Abbotrsquo;s gatehouse, the Abbey Mill, The vicarage and the Tudor-style dwellings in Church Street. The area surrounding the Abbey is protected from development by the Abbey Lawn Trust, originally funded by a United States benefactor.