Lottery grant to help preserve the heritage of Brecon Cathedral

Plans to preserve the heritage of Brecon Cathedral have taken a step forward thanks to a development grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Brecon Cathedral has secured £158,297 for its ‘People, Passion, Priory: Brecon Cathedral, The Heart and Soul of Community’ project.

The grant will allow it to draw up detailed plans about how to deliver the project and apply for delivery funding.

The ‘People, Passion, Priory: Brecon Cathedral, The Heart and Soul of Community’ project is aiming to attract more people - including tourists - to the 1,000-year-old cathedral with a new exhibition, a digital trail and a range of events and activities.

It will allow a wider range of people including families, young adults and disabled people to benefit from the cathedral’s unique and inspirational space and heritage.

It will also see improved access to the cathedral with a new west entrance and repairing four of the building’s 150-year-old roofs.

The repair work to the roofs is planned to be carried out by local people who will be trained through an NVQ Level 3 heritage roofing training programme.

Dean of Brecon Dr Paul Shackerley said: "Everyone at Brecon Cathedral is absolutely delighted that we’ve received this support thanks to National Lottery players. It will transform our cathedral and what we can offer to our local community and those who visit from far and wide.

“The support will enable us to establish a national training scheme in heritage skills, interpret our rich and living history for new generations, and provide equal access to our building for all.”

Bishop John said: "Congratulations to the Dean and to the Chapter and to everybody involved in the lottery application. We all know how hard it is to keep stone upon stone, especially in some of our most beautiful buildings. So it's with great joy. I am able to say thank you to everybody involved in the project."

Andrew White, Wales Director of The National Lottery Heritage Fund said: “Heritage is for everyone and it can be anything from the past that you value and want to pass on to future generations and The National Lottery Heritage Fund is one of Wales’ main funders of heritage organisations and heritage projects.

“As such, it’s my pleasure to announce today that we are awarding project development funding to Brecon Cathedral."