Church of the Week
Selby, Yorkshire
Selby Abbey started the millennium on the World's Most Endangered Historic Sites watch list. But thanks to its volunteers and new grants, its future is bright. 40,000 visitors a year come here – one of the few remaining medieval abbeys in the UK. This boosts the local economy and creates volunteer pathways for people interested in heritage and history – a notoriously hard sector to break into. But this Grade I Listed building still needs urgent repairs. The most immediate threat comes from water damage from the deteriorating roof, guttering and stonework. Thankfully help is at hand. Selby Abbey will receive a £45,000 grant from the National Churches Trust. On the recommendation of the National Churches Trust, the Abbey will also receive a £15,000 Wolfson Fabric Repair Grant from the Wolfson Foundation. "For the last 956 years, Selby Abbey has been at the heart of the town, which grew up around the monastery that was established here in 1069," shares The Reverend Canon John Weetman, Vicar at Selby Abbey. "Grants like these from the National Churches Trust and the Wolfson Fabric Repair Fund are absolutely vital in keeping this beating heart alive for the local community and for all those who come to enjoy the Abbey from across the UK and around the world."
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