A multi-million-pound grants programme which funded urgent repairs to historic Catholic churches was “an unprecedented investment” according to the chief executive of Historic England, Duncan Wilson.
Speaking at a parliamentary reception held to celebrate the awards, Mr Wilson said many of the places of worship were in deprived areas and would not have stood a chance of getting the work done without the grants.
“It gave a boost to morale and provided local employment,” he added.
Thirty-eight churches in England, and one historic house – Harvington Hall, near Kidderminster - received a total of £6.5 million from the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund which was set up in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. Historic England administered two rounds of the programme with awards made between 2020 and 2022 to Grade I and Grade II* listed buildings. They each received 80 per cent of the cost of the work.
The reception, held on Wednesday last week, saw the launch of a lavishly-illustrated publication, Living Stones, which lists the beneficiaries and gives the background. MPs, peers and many people working in church conservation attended the event in the Jubilee Room, hosted by Deputy Speaker, Nigel Evans.
The Archbishop Emeritus of Cardiff, George Stack, chair of the patrimony committee of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, said the grants had thrown a lifeline to beleaguered churches whose income had disappeared as a result of Covid. They were recognition that Catholic churches make a contribution architectural heritage and to social cohesion.
“So often with the changing demographics in our country, when people make their home here, the first place they go to is the local Catholic church. It gives them a sense of identity and a sense of security,” said Archbishop Stack.
He singled out St Ignatius, the earliest church in Preston, Lancashire, now the Syro-Malabar Cathedral of St Alphonsa. The church closed in 2014 but it was taken on the following year by the Syro-Malabar Catholic community, which originates in southern India and has 40,000 members in Britain. The church received almost £430,000, in two rounds of funding, to clear dry rot and renew the roof.
Archbishop Stack and Duncan Wilson hailed the fruitful partnership between the Catholic Church and Historic England which has grown over more than a decade. Mr Wilson said that 105 Catholic places of worship had been newly listed and 47 upgraded since then.
Heritage Minister, Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, said the Taking Stock research programme, which has assessed the architectural and historic importance of Catholic churches in England and Wales, had been key in helping to understand their heritage value.
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