Plans to preserve the heritage of Brecon’s 1,000-year-old cathedral have taken a step forward thanks to a substantial grant from Benefact Trust.
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The Trust exists to make a positive difference to people's lives by funding, guiding and celebrating the work of churches and Christian charities and giving people, communities, and places a renewed opportunity to flourish. It has awarded the Cathedral £40,000 for its ‘People, Passion, Priory: Brecon Cathedral, The Heart and Soul of Community’ project.
The Cathedral Church of St.John the Evangelist was built in 1106 as a Benedictine Priory and became a cathedral in 1923 with the establishment of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon. Situated within Wales’s only walled cathedral close, it forms an architecturally significant medieval group of buildings with other listed structures including the Priory walls, Tithebarn, the Almonry, and Lychgate. The Cathedral protects a collection of ancient treasures including a 12th-century Romanesque font; Britain's largest medieval cresset stone; and important cultural heritage artefacts of the South Wales Borderers within the 14th-century Havard Chapel, including the Zulu War and Chillianwala Battle Colours, and the Wreath Immortelles presented by Queen Victoria.
The Dean of Brecon, Dr Paul Shackerley said: “Inspections in 2021 revealed extensive damage to the Cathedral's roofs. Frequent leaks, plaster falls, and plant growth threaten the integrity of the building and put the artefacts inside at risk. We are delighted to receive this grant from Benefact Trust, which will make a significant contribution to the most urgent roof repair work.”
Paul Playford, Senior Grants and Operations Officer for Benefact Trust, said: “We’re pleased to support this critical roof restoration at Brecon Cathedral. This unique medieval cathedral is an important part of Welsh history and houses rare treasures that are of great historical importance. This work will help to secure the future of the cathedral so that people can continue to enjoy the building for generations to come.”
New red-sandstone tiles will be sourced from the only operational quarry nearby. The work to the roofs will form part of a wider project to address heritage at risk onsite and to improve access for which the Cathedral has received funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.