GRANTS of £57,500 AWARDED TO SUFFOLK CHURCHES
Thirteen Suffolk churches facing huge bills for repairs and conservation have heard that they have been awarded grants towards their costs from Suffolk Historic Churches Trust. The total sum awarded at the April Grants Meeting was £57,500 divided among nine churches in West Suffolk, and four in East Suffolk
The successful parish churches are in Bardwell, Blyford, Brockley, Bungay, Copdock, Creeting St Mary, Framsden, Hepworth, Lackford, Norton, Woolpit, Worlington and Worlingworth.
The various work that will be undertaken in the churches include repairs to floors, towers, roofs, ceilings, walls, windows, gutters and improved heating. At Holy Trinity in Bungay the work will enable more community activities to be held there, and at St Mary’s, Worlingworth, the grant will go towards a condition report prior to work on their nationally significant font cover.
“Three of the churches awarded grants in April have to find well in excess of £100,000 each,” said John Devaux, Chairman of the Grants Committee, SHCT. “There are further churches in Suffolk which have to raise over half a million pounds in order to fund the instruction of experts and the commencement of urgent repairs. The sum required to safeguard this part of our heritage continues to rise inexorably year by year.”
The total cost of the work at the thirteen churches (excl VAT) is £593,000 and the money awarded by the Trust will support other grant applications and encourage local people in their fundraising efforts.
The SHCT grant money is raised by legacies and the annual Suffolk Churches Ride and Stride Day, the Suffolk Churches vintage and classic car rally Pedal & Drive, as well as a Steeple to Steeple horse ride, all held on the same day. This year the fundraising day will be held on Saturday 12th September and details are on this website.
There are four Suffolk Historic Churches Trust Grants Meetings scheduled a year and any church, chapel or meeting house, of any denomination can apply.
Suffolk Historic Churches Trust Grants awarded in April 2026 were:
1 St Peter & Paul, Bardwell : repair churchyard wall
2 All Saints, Blyford : install pew heaters
3 St Andrew, Brockley : patch leadwork on tower, vestry, porch roofs; re-lead window
4 Holy Trinity, Bungay : remove pews, refloor and heat area south of south aisle so that it can be used for community activities
5 St Peter, Copdock : repair tower roof and cracks; install equal access
6 St Mary, Creeting St Mary : re-slating vestry
7 St Mary, Framsden : some re-tiling of chancel roof
8 St Peter, Hepworth : re-tiling part chancel and all nave roofs
9 St Lawrence, Lackford : replace plaster in part nave ceiling
10 St Andrew, Norton : phased window repairs
11 St Mary, Woolpit : repointing, stone repairs, replaciing floorboards, re-plastering, window repairs
12 All Saints, Worlington : replace fallen guttering
13 St Mary, Worlingworth : condition report prior to work on nationally significant font cover.
There are more details of how to make a grant application HERE