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UK News

England's cathedrals given £40m makeover

by Tola Mbakwe

The government funding, which applies to both Catholic and Church of England cathedrals, was created to address urgent repair works that would hinder commemoration events that cathedrals are set to host.

Becky Clark, the director of churches and cathedrals for the Church of England, told Premier the fund prioritised making buildings weatherproof, safe and open to the public.

"The money was spent on buildings matters, and most of the applications we had were for things like roof work, high level stone work and guttering... the things that go wrong in any building but when they go wrong on a cathedral they go wrong in a big way," she said.

For example, Southwark Cathedral in London received a £887,000 grant which paid for high-level roof, masonry repairs and the installation of a number of new corbels.

Among the new corbels at Southwark is a carving of PC Wayne Marques, who fought off attackers in the London Bridge attack using only a truncheon and was temporarily blinded as a result, and another to the cathedral's resident cat, Doorkins.

During the work, members of the public had the opportunity to observe and talk to the workers, learning about the ancient craft of stone carving.

Clark told Premier, while the project has enabled cathedrals to be ready for hosting upcoming First World War centenary events, it's more than just about renovation work.

"[It's] an enormous opportunity to get people who would never go to a church service to come to a church and have an experience of peace and joy, and wonder as well."
 
Twelve cathedrals were awarded more than £1m each, and the average award was £274,000.

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