Church gets heritage help

Thornhill Parish Church has been given the grant by English Heritage. It will be used for a new project called Let there be light – bringing your heritage to light, which will help visitors access and enjoy the church’s history.

A project development worker who will work with local schools to help pupils learn about the church’s heritage, has been appointed.

The new recruit, Charlotte Derry, said: “The role and the project looked really interesting.

“I had visited the church and thought it was stunning and had such great stories to tell, and really wonderful architectural design.

“I really wanted to apply for the job and play some part in telling those stories and sharing the church’s beauty with local people who might not know about it, or want to find out more.”

Work has been taken place for the last 18 months to restore the Grade I listed church. Miss Derry will help to bring more people into the church, as well as more volunteer guides who can help others to learn about its history.

She said: “I’ll be working with the local schools including Overthorpe Junior and Infant School, to design resources and sessions that schools can enjoy at the church. I will also be helping to improve the overall visitor experience, creating interpretations of the buildings’ heritage, whether this is about the building itself, the conservation work, the local community or the different rectors and religious history of the congregation.”

“I am really looking forward to researching the history of the building, and also meeting more of the project team and local people, to find out how we can make this building really appeal to them and become a great local resource to visit, walk to, or use.”

Some of grant money will be spend on new lighting and automatic doors.

Project manager Brian Pearson said: “We are delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has made this grant which will enable the church to interact closely with the local and national community in bringing to life this wonderful Grade I listed building.”