ENGLISH cathedrals have been awarded grants of £14.5 million from the First World War Cathedrals Centenary Repairs Fund, for urgent repairs to roofs, stained-glass windows, and stonework.

Thirty-nine Church of England and Roman Catholic cathedrals have benefited from awards in this, the second round of grants made by the fund.

The biggest recipient is Coventry Cathedral, which has been given £870,000 to repair exterior slates to the circular Chapel of Unity, which is shaped like a nomadic tent. The chapel has been fenced off for years because of the danger from falling slates.

Wakefield Cathedral has been given £456,000 to complete repairs to its windows, in the final phase of the complete refurbishment of the building; and Derby Cathedral has £750,000 to carry out repairs to its nave roof. Lichfield Cathedral has been awarded £690,000 to repair water damage and erosion in its unique, two-storey Chapter House.

Dame Fiona Reynolds, who chairs the Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England, said: “Cathedrals are the beating hearts of their communities, offering sanctuary, beauty, collective history, and social and economic support to people of every generation. Cathedrals which benefited from the first phase of this fund have been repaired and refurbished, and staff and volunteers have time and resources to serve their cities and regions with renewed energy. It is fantastic that more cathedrals are now able to benefit from this scheme.

”England’s cathedrals are a wonderfully diverse group, encompassing not only vast, world-famous medieval buildings such as Durham, Lincoln, and Canterbury, but also smaller churches such as Wakefield and Leicester, which were made cathedrals to serve the growing urban populations of the industrial revolution. These too have become jewels in the centres of their cities, and showcases to the entire nation, as we saw with Leicester Cathedral’s events around the re-interment of Richard III.”