Buttington Church needs to raise £35,000 to repair its roof, which was damaged in a storm last winter.
The church has already raised over £20,000, but if it hasn’t reached the total and if work hasn’t started by September, it could risk losing huge chunks of the funding it has already received.
Ellen Roberson from the church said: “There was a terrible storm last winter. We have had to raise funds. We had to have special people to come look at it. And we’re still trying to raise this money.”
The damage is to the ceiling of the church, on the side of the bell tower, and mainly consists of a hole; with the wooden structure and plaster having come apart.
However, professionals came to look at the damage, and the repair work needing doing is far more than just repairing the hole itself. There are cracks forming across the plaster on the ceiling, and all of that will need to be repaired and reapplied, hence the hefty £35,000 price tag.
Graham Roberson, the treasurer for the church, has been busy applying for grants and doing whatever he can to encourage people to donate to the cause. He says the fundraising has now reached “sticking point”.
Despite being successful in securing grants, some of those he has received require the church to have started work at a particular date, and for the work to be completed at a particular date too.
However, right now, there’s two problems. The full amount needed for the repairs hasn’t been raised, and the church is yet to find a local building company which is specialised enough to carry out work on the listed church. Without securing the funds and the craftsmanship, the work cannot start when it needs to; in September.
The damage to the roof is also very close to the bell tower of the church, and there are fears that damage could have been done to the bell tower itself.
“We can’t ring the bell, we don’t know how much more it would affect the ceiling,” said Mrs Roberson. There are plans to get someone in to inspect any possible damage to the bell tower.
Mr Roberson said: “It’s a much loved church and it’s a beautiful little building
“There’s been a church in that site for at least 2,000 years."
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