Funding for fire damaged chapel repair

A grant has been awarded to help repair a fire-damaged Grade II* listed chapel and school.

The former Junior Seminary Chapel of St Aloysius at St Cuthbert's College in Ushaw, County Durham, was seriously damaged in a fire in July 2023.

Historic England has awarded £400,000 for emergency repair works to safeguard the buildings from further deterioration.

Durham Constabulary said an investigation into a potential arson attack has been closed pending new evidence.

A police spokesperson said: "Unfortunately, due to the extensive fire damage and isolated location, there was insufficient evidence to identify a suspect and the investigation has been closed, pending any new information."

'Devastating blow'

Since the arson attack, there has been further decay to the Junior House and St Aloysius Chapel caused in part by recent heavy storms, Historic England said.

The £400,000 grant will fund repairs to the roof structure and high-level masonry, as well as the erection of a temporary roof to prevent further damage to the inside of the chapel.

Stabilisation work on the unsafe roof carpentry and high-level masonry will be undertaken on both buildings.

Maria Carballeira from Historic England said: “This emergency repair work is the first step towards rescuing these historic buildings, which played such an important role in the revival of Roman Catholicism in Northern England."

Ushaw, the independent charity which runs the site as an attraction, said the fire was a "devastating blow".

Lucy Jenkins, Co-CEO & Director of Culture and Heritage at Ushaw, said: “We are thrilled that we can now begin the process of conservation, that will enable our visitors to see it restored in the future.”

Ushaw's main building, the historic house and grounds were unaffected by the fire.