Cathedral repairs for World War 1 anniversary

COVENTRY Cathedral has repaired its Chapel of Unity with £1.27million of funding from Westminster to make the building ready for this year’s World War One commemorations.

The Armistice Day on November 11 will be the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One and Coventry Cathedral will be commemorating the millions killed with its annual service.

In 2014, the coalition government announced a national scheme to repair England’s cathedrals from which Coventry Cathedral was awarded £1,266,629.

The funds were used to place lead capping to waterproof the ruins of St Michael’s and to replace the tiles around the cathedral’s Chapel of Unity.

The chapel has pillars with the glass embedded in it which had become dirty and missing fixings.

The whole bay was netted off and the chapel had fencing around it, meaning people didn’t have access to the garden.

The £40 million First World War Centenary Cathedral Repairs Fund prioritised making buildings weatherproof, safe and open to the public, to put them in top condition to host acts of remembrance for the centenary of World War One armistice in 2018.

Coventry Cathedral is the most well-known attraction in Coventry, with one in ten tourists to the city visiting specifically to see the cathedral. Each cathedral has the responsibility for raising the funds required for upkeep. However, with no regular government funding, cathedrals face an ongoing challenge to maintain their fabric while ensuring comfort, safety and accessibility for all.

Coventry Cathedral expects to welcome increased visitor numbers throughout 2018 for the World War One commemorations, including We Remember! A World War One Remembrance Commemoration concert, taking place in the autumn.

The Dean of Coventry, John Witcombe, said: “The ruins of the medieval cathedral stand proudly as an icon of hope. They are known throughout the world as the place where our ministry of peace and reconciliation began and remain a focal point for many events and activities in the city each year.

“This timely funding has enabled the completion of an eight-year project to ensure this iconic site remains open and accessible as a place for quiet reflection and to experience the impact of the peace-building work to which we are committed.

“The Chapel of Unity is under the care of a number of Christian denominations, as after the bombing, the crypt in the ruins was opened to shared worship for all denominations, as a sign of reconciliation.

“That was an important part of our history, and since the bombing we have been working for reconciliation.

“When the new cathedral was built it was intended that a new chapel like this should exist as a place of prayer for people of different faiths, and we intend it for all faith groups.

“The chapel was designed as a self contained chapel, but connected to the cathedrals. It is designed very deliberately so that it has a beautiful view to the stained glass windows, and to the cathedral font, which is a uniting symbol of Christian initiation.

“The thing that many people from Coventry remember is that the chapel is very slightly dished, so by rolling golf balls from the outer of the room, which we do with the schools visiting, they all meet in the centre.

“Basil Spence was an extraordinarily visionary person, the building was very innovative at the time, and the building was very ground-breaking with its use of concrete.

“The chapel has pillars with the glass embedded in it, which was very popular in the mid-century, it is called Dalle de Verre, and a lot of that had become dirty and the fixings had gone.

“All the slates, which were brought from the Lake District, had the concrete fixing degraded, and one or two had fallen off. The whole bay was netted off, and the chapel had fencing around it so people didn’t have access to the garden.

“First we had a grant for £100,000 from the government’s World War One fund, and we had thought that it could be enough to fix the problem. But we needed to go back with a second grant application and we were really grateful we were successful in that. “With that we could repoint and clean every one of the slates and fix again to the concrete base.

“There are often people who come to sit on the base of the chapel. It is striking building in its own right, and it sits within the Unity Lawn garden, with the nice weather people can come to picnic on it.”

The Dean went on: “As we head towards the commemorations in November, the chapel will be used to gather people from different Christian traditions, but it is specified for people to pray here from different faiths.

“So we like to offer the cathedral as a place of prayer from different faith traditions. It is a symbol for people to gather here and make commitments for peace.”

Grants were awarded by an independent panel chaired by Sir Paul Ruddock, a position appointed by the Secretary of State. The fund was administered by the Church of England’s Cathedrals and Church Buildings Division (CCB) on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with the CCB praised in the report for cost efficiency and excellent communication. In May Coventry Cathedral received funding to keep free entrance for its visitors and this will continue this year.

As we head towards the commemorations in November, the chapel will be used to gather people from different Christian traditions... Dean of