Since 1991 The Headley Trust has made 176 grants, totalling over £5.5m, for repairs to Anglican cathedrals and major churches built before 1850. The payments cover a litany of issues – from leaking roofs to worn- out carvings, broken windows or damaged towers.
A treasured example is Gloucester Cathedral – the recipient of six grants since 1997 – and whose oldest parts were first constructed in the 11th century. One of the country’s finest medieval buildings, it stands in the city’s heart on a site of worship that stretches back 1500 years. It boasts an array of architectural styles and the largest cathedral window in England – the size of a tennis court. It also has the beautiful 15th century Lady Chapel, plus the tomb of King Edward II. Annually, hundreds of thousands of people visit and there is a thriving community around it.
Conserving such a historic building is naturally beset with challenges. The Trust has funded work on areas such as the highly decorative buttresses of the South Aisle, which desperately needed repair. The Trust has also funded complex work on the 11th century crypt’s pillars, alongside other parts of the cathedral over the years.
Gloucester Cathedral is one of only ten cathedrals in the country to have a stonemasons’ yard, therefore much of this work has been undertaken by its own employees and apprentices. This initiative was set up as a cost-effective way to carry out all the necessary work of conserving the cathedral’s glory. The workshop has since developed a reputation as a centre of excellence in heritage skills like stone masonry and conservation. The Trust has funded bursaries for apprentices to train in these much-needed vocations.
While these bursaries are under the Trust’s Education category, there is a double benefit, with the stonemasons working on the conservation funded through the Cathedrals category. By training the next generation, there is a purpose-built legacy of skill to continue to repair and conserve these impressive buildings for centuries to come.
As the Gloucester Master Mason, Pascal Mychalysin said in the Church Times: “It’s complex, the repairs of a historic building... Essentially, we use the same medieval techniques: repairing, conserving, replacing. The historic environment keeps us in touch with our humanity and heritage, with the wit and genius of the people in the past, and it should be looked after now.”