Manchester Cathedral’s £10m development “Our Cathedral, Our City” project has gained support with a £4.6m pledge.
Manchester Cathedral project to better reflect the city and the communities it serves, gets National Lottery Heritage funding
The project aims to transform Manchester Cathedral’s relationship with the city and its community by co-creating a heritage narrative that includes contemporary issues, radically improving access and welcome, and making the Cathedral environmentally and financially sustainable.
The Dean, the Very Revd Rogers Govender said:
“We are delighted to have received this initial grant of £554,881 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund towards our development phase. Thanks to National Lottery players, we can develop our plans to improve access and facilities and join with our community in sharing and interpreting our rich mutual heritage.”
This development funding will be used to scope out the project in preparation of an application for the full grant of £4m towards the end of 2027.
The Grade 1 listed cathedral is located in the Cathedral Conservation Area. It was licensed as a collegiate church by Henry V in 1421 and made a cathedral by Queen Victoria in 1847.
It can boast Quire stalls that date from 1500-1506 and were funded by the mother of Henry VII, a Nave where chantry chapels once stood and where musical angels still show off their instruments in the ceiling, and spectacular modern stained glass.
But without the funding from the Heritage Fund the cathedral cannot provide the improved access and facilities for visitors and volunteers to open up its 600 years of extensive archival documents for co-created stories with the community, nor communicate and engage effectively with the audience it seeks to serve, nor make the intangible heritage of worship and ceremonial traditions their own.
Manchester Cathedral will be holding pilot events throughout the coming months, so please look out for invitations on the web site to join in special occasions, exhibitions and exploration of archives.
