At St Mary’s we do have a vision for a future where our church is central and relevant to modern village life, where we attract newcomers and are welcoming to all who visit , where we further develop our use of technology within the church to enhance the experience of our congregation and our visitors. But, before we can do that, we have a number of large and necessary maintenance projects that urgently need our attention. As with any large project, the costs are considerable. Our congregation already contribute to the running the building, so part of the process for any new project must be applications for grants and other outside sources of funding.

THE CHANCEL ROOF
The church building is inspected by the Church Architect every five years and he advises on works that are needed in his Quinquennial report. A major item requiring attention was the chancel roof, which is the responsibility of the church commissioners, so we do not have to raise funds for that repair. However, the chancel roof is attached to the north transept roof (over the organ chamber) so it would be sensible to have both roofs repaired at the same time.

STONEWORK (and clock)
An urgent item highlighted in the last Quinquennial report was to check and repoint the clerestory parapet. Although not a huge job in itself, it seemed sensible to group the urgent item with other stonework requiring attention. Much of the area needing attention is not easily accessible and would require scaffolding or similar. Also, whilst there is scaffolding around the tower, it would be sensible to include repairs to the external parts of the clock as part of the project.

THE ORGAN
For some time now, the organ has been having problems which cannot be rectified without a complete overhaul. Our organ is a Nicholson and Lord, 3 manual and pedal board, tracker action instrument which is not only rare but is over 100 years old. It is part of our history at St Mary’s and deserves restoration.