A historic church in New Radnor, which has links to Owain Glyndŵr and British architect George Pace, needs to raise £5,000 for damaged walls after a leak seeped through to the building.
Saint Mary’s Church, built in 1845, stands on the site of the Norman church, with legend saying that in 1401 Owain Glyndŵr left the original church in ruins, as well as the nearby castle.
Reverend Rachael Storer discovered that a build-up in the guttering of the church resulted in water overflowing. “The water was cascading down the wall, and because of the old stone of the church it acted as a sponge. We had ivy growing off the wall, but that’s been killed off now. It’s a health and safety risk, with the paint crumbling and falling off.”
She’s hoping that they can raise enough money to fix the walls and deal with the guttering around the church so that the leak doesn’t happen again. “It’s going to cost at least £5,000. We can go into the chancel fund, but we’re not allowed to touch the churchyard fund. Our actual account has got some money for the work, but not enough to do it. We’re starting a soft funding launch to raise awareness, but we want to increase funding. It’s a very significant church in the marches, and we need to pass it on to the next generation. It’s really important to keep this church. If we don’t do the work, the money is going to keep mounting up until the roof goes. For the case of spending £5,000 to get the walls done, to survey the gutters, it’s going to cost us £1,000 just to survey the guttering and down pipes. We’re looking between £5,000 to £6,000 to get the work done.”
The walls need a fresh coat of lime wash, but accessing grants and funding to complete the work is difficult. “We’re looking into grants, but because it’s a small group of people it’s down to me to get those grants. I’m in contact with people to see what funding we can get, but the grants from the dioceses are shrinking.”
Rachael is reverend for four other churches in the area and is finding that funding for those churches is also meeting roadblocks. “It’s very difficult to focus on just one church because each of those churches have got their own thing that they’re asking of me. It can be difficult to balance my time with each church. It is a case of seeing what funding is out there, but the trouble is there are so many people going after the same pot of money. If you think of the Swansea and Brecon diocese, there are one hundred-odd churches, and they’re all asking for a central pot. They assess the severity of what is happening, and then they grant the money. It’s not like you can ask and get. Historic buildings are also after the same money, and the belts are pulled so tightly over the last few years, they’re a lot more choosy on what projects they do.”
Rachael has to find three quotes before the work can be approved, but she’s finding it difficult to get anyone to even look at the church, let alone take on the job. “The walls are lime wash. We’re hoping that it’s going to be sandblasted and then the lime wash put back on, and hopefully not too much else will need doing. Trying to get a local company when you mention the word lime is difficult. Because it is a church building, you have to have three quotes, and trying to get three quotes in this neck of the woods is hard. There are firms in Swansea, but they won’t come up because they deem it not to be viable. I’m waiting for the diocese office to get back to me to see if a builder can come back to us and give us a resume of his work so that they will accept it.”
She’s hoping that the work can be done before next winter. “Each winter is getting wetter. We just need to make sure the wall is sound underneath. It might be a long-term project, but it is something we’d like to get done before next winter.”
The interior of the church has been restored over the years, with renowned architect George Pace coming to decorate in the 60s. Pace is famous for his restoration of Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff after it suffered damage from a bomb in World War II. “George Pace was the one who came and designed the inside of the church. The chairs, the candle sticks, the cross, everything you see, he’s the one who reordered the church. The organ is pink, and the doors are green because that was in his colour scheme.”
Members of the public can help the church by either getting in touch with Reverend Rachael or by donating to the church funds bank account.
“If we don’t do the maintenance, then there’s no point doing the inside. It’s the equipment outside that keeps the church dry,” Rachael says. “This is a beautiful church and we want it here in the future.”