Broughton St Mary's needs your help!

We are an active, friendly and inclusive congregation in the heart of Edinburgh, with the care and responsibility of one of the most beautiful and recognized buildings in the city. Our premises are in regular use by many community and faith groups, and our main sanctuary is particularly sought after for exhibitions and as a rehearsal, performance and recording space by many choirs and orchestras.

In the summer of 2021 we embarked upon an overhaul of our sanctuary, vestibule and stairwells as part of our community outreach, and to render our facilities more attractive and user-friendly. The work is far-reaching, including complete rewiring, new lighting, updated audio-visual systems, wheelchair access to the front portion of the church, repairs to areas of old water damage and complete redecoration of a vast space that - while remaining elegant - had become over time rather careworn in appearance.

The budget for the project was painstakingly planned out, and work commenced. However, when scaffolding was erected indoors and human access to the tower made possible, a number of unforeseen problems came to light. Instability of the cornicework of the sanctuary ceiling was found to be much more widespread than anticipated, necessitating plaster specialists to be drafted in to assess and begin to make right the damage. Even more significant was the condition of the top of the tower. The stonework of the dome and the lightning rod/weathervane were found to be in a perilous state and of imminent danger to the public below, and the decision was taken with utmost expediency to make safe the tower.

Grant giving bodies, sadly, do not provide funding for any repairs once a project has started, and the result of these emergencies is a major funding gap (more of a gulf, really) which has had to be bridged in the meantime with substantial loans. The timescale for the entire project has increased from 20 to 30 weeks, and the prolonged closure of the main building following directly in the wake of 18 months of Covid restrictions continues to have a severely detrimental effect on the income that the church is able to generate.

Broughton St Mary's is nearly 200 years old, the foundation stone having been laid in 1824 and the building dedicated in 1826. It is more than the home of our worshipping community - it is part of the fabric of our beautiful city. The blessing of its presence belongs to anyone who may have crossed the threshold, or beheld the serene elegance of the tower, sentinel over the rooftops of the eastern New Town.

We hope that you will consider helping us through a donation to look forward into the future with faith and confidence - and help the tower of Broughton St Mary's to stand for another 200 years!

Once the material work of our project is completed, consider booking our facilities to host your event...or just come and visit us. All are welcome.