A YEAR-long project has begun to restore the 200-year-old Union Chapel in Islington, north London, including essential repairs to its Grade II listed Sunday-school building.

Funding of £1.3 million from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and National Lottery Players will provide a new roof, thermal insulation, and a more efficient heating system for the building. Additional funding from the City Bridge Foundation will ensure improved accessibility for users, including new wheelchair-accessible facilities and a loop system.

The project will also draw on the Sunday school’s large and untapped collection of records, books, artefacts, and memorabilia to tell the story of Nonconformist Christians who found acceptance here, and the lives of local people. Activities in the building, which adjoins James Cubitt’s Gothic Revival chapel, included classes for 180 underprivileged children.

Union Chapel became a music venue in 1992, and is famous for its acoustics. Performers there include Amy Winehouse, Elton John, and Adele, and it now has a global reputation. In addition, it is home to the Margins Project, a frontline service for people experiencing crisis.

When the venue reopens in September next year, it promises to be “a vibrant, lively community space for workshops, events, activities and meetings . . . a perfectly intimate space for spoken word, acoustic sets, and exhibitions”; and “a welcoming space for our local communities to thrive and grow”.