Norwich 'Church of Art' gets £500k for urgent repairs

St Margaret's has been used as a gallery and is known as The Church of Art

An "exciting" project to repair an at-risk medieval church can go ahead after it was awarded a £500,000 grant.

St Margaret's on St Benedicts Street in Norwich, Norfolk, needs urgent work on its tower, south chapel and chancel.

The Grade I-listed building, which was closed as a place of worship in 1975 and is now known as The Church of Art, was given the cash by Historic England.

Norwich Historic Churches Trust (NHCT) said it was "so pleased" and hoped more people could enjoy the restored space.

The church was added to Historic England's Heritage at Risk Register in 2020 due to structural failure and decay.

Last year, there were concerns the church wall could collapse.

The church is currently used as an exhibition space and has also been a gymnasium since it closed as a place of worship

Historic England said the work would include roof, masonry and drainage repairs, and followed project development and investigation work completed earlier this year.

"St Margaret's continues to be a focal point for the community and a welcoming space for all to enjoy," said Domenico D'Alessandro, an architect and surveyor for Historic England.

"This extensive repair programme will ensure that the building can be used and loved into the future."

Mark Wilson of NHCT said he was thrilled with the grant from Historic England

Norwich has the highest number of surviving medieval churches in any city north of the Alps.

These churches have been collectively considered to be of international importance given the number of churches built in the city, their architectural quality and the number that have survived, Historic England said.

Mark Wilson, surveyor of the fabric at NHCT, said: "We are so pleased that this exciting project can go ahead to conserve this significant part of the medieval heritage of Norwich.

"It will be a fantastic project covering many elements of church restoration and craft skills.

"We couldn't do this without our supporters, especially Historic England, and hope to further improve public access in this building after the works are complete."