New funding to help threatened Vicars' Close
Wells Cathedral has received £4.4 million to help save Vicars' Close
Wells Cathedral has been awarded a share of £7.4million from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to help save Vicars' Close.
The future of the medieval street is threatened by a backlog of repairs, with the money hoping to contribute to critical conservation works.
Vicars’ Close is the oldest residential street in Europe. Connected to Wells Cathedral, the quadrangle street contains 27 Grade I listed residencies, built in the early fifteenth century to house the cathedral’s adult choir.
The project has been awarded £4.4m of National Lottery funding to help restore Vicars’ Close’s buildings, addressing a backlog of repairs which have left the buildings in poor condition.
The project is hoping to invite young musicians from all backgrounds to participate through a 3-year programme of events, activities, and community outreach.
The programme is set to include temporary exhibitions, an oral history project, artist residencies, a musical outreach programme and more.
In addition to the support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Cathedral has already raised £1m from generous donors.
"extraordinary heritage"
The Very Reverend Toby Wright, Dean of Wells Cathedral, said:
“Vicars’ Close is a truly remarkable place, possibly without parallel anywhere in the world.
"We have a responsibility not only to protect the architectural site but also to share its extraordinary heritage and enable more people to engage with it.
"We are absolutely thrilled that National Lottery Heritage Fund have made such a generous and significant contribution to help us achieve that ambition.”
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:
“Places of worship, and the buildings associated with them, are some of our oldest and most cherished historic buildings and many play a key role as a gateway to our heritage and communities.
“We are delighted to invest in these places of worship, ensuring that their heritage will be valued, cared for, and sustained, for everyone, now and in the future.”