Welcome to our March Newsletter, and as the seasons change, symbolised by these spring lambs, part of a stained-glass window at Banham, St Mary the Virgin, we hope that the longer daylight hours afford you the opportunity to visit some of our wonderful Norfolk Churches.
As you will recall from our previous News articles, The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was set to run until 31 March 2026, but sadly the £23 million pot ran out mid-February, leaving hundreds of churches facing increased costs. This includes those in the care of the Norfolk Churches Trust: with two of our leased churches undergoing major repair works, we are having to re-budget in order to cover the 20% VAT bill.
We await with great anticipation the full details of the new Places of Worship Renewal Fund, hoping it will meet the requirements of the sector and that the application process will be straight forward. In the meantime, we are doing what we can to help churches through this transition period.
At our Grants Committee Meeting on Thursday 19th March, we offered grants totalling £53,386. For the first time directly assisting two churches, who were either mid project or about to start work, to fund their VAT costs, thus enabling repairs to go ahead. We wish the fourteen churches in receipt of a grant this time good luck with their projects.
| Church | Amount | Brief Description of Works |
| Attlebridge, St Andrew | £5,000 | Window repairs |
| Billingford, By Bawdeswell, St Peter | £4,500 | Ongoing window repair project |
| Boughton, All Saints | £2,000 | To replace gutters |
| Colton, St Andrew | £4,000 | Window repairs |
| Crostwight, All Saints | £8,000 | Major structural repair project and urgent conservation of 14th century wall paintings |
| Hingham, St Andrew | £5,000 | Repairs to tower and ringing floor level |
| Ingham, Holy Trinity | £2,000 | Window repairs |
| Kirby Cane, All Saints | £5,496 | Investigation work for roof repairs |
| Old Lakenham, St John the Baptist | £3,500 | Installation of new south door to make weathertight |
| Oxborough, St John the Evangelist | £1,000 | Repairs to vestry roof to prevent water ingress |
| Runhall, All Saints | £2,630 | Shortfall of funds for works due to delay in start of works and withdrawal of LPWS |
| Shipdham, All Saints | £4,760 | Repairs to guttering and downpipes to counter damp in tower |
| Thursford, St Andrew | £5,000 | Major repair works to tower |
| Wymondham Baptist Church | £700 | Window restoration |
Here are a couple of examples from the churches that have received a grant from the Trust this time to illustrate the issues that affect many of our church buildings.
The Norfolk Churches Trust was incorporated on the 8th March 1976. Since that time the Trust has awarded more than £7.1 million in grants to 733 different churches, therefore there are not many churches in the county who have not been assisted by a grant from the Norfolk Churches Trust. We thought that was good enough reason to celebrate our 50th anniversary with cake. Appropriately, the cake was cut by Trustee Michael Sayer, who has been with the Trust from the very start.
Pictured also are representatives from our Trustees and Advisory Council, who voluntarily do so much to support our work on their various committees, whether arranging events, supporting the grant process, fundraising, running our Bike Ride, Walk & Drive, as well as the legal and corporate responsibilities in running a charity today.
In November 2025, the Trust awarded a grant of £6,390 to Outwell, St Clement for emergency scaffolding, made necessary following an inspection which revealed potentially serious structural issues with some of the roof timbers. In addition, putting the scaffolding up has revealed some rotting floor timbers and severe damp problems which collectively means that the church is currently unable to be open to the public.
These issues have resulted in the need for the implementation of a large programme of essential repairs and restoration works.
On a positive note: Edna, the Church Warden, continues to organise weekly coffee mornings in the porch, as well as a monthly short service.
The PCC and the Friends recognise how important it is to keep the church as a focal point for the village and were able to arrange some beautiful Christmas lights and a Christmas tree along the pathway to the building.
A Christmas carol community singing event in the church yard, followed by mince pies and mulled wine in the porch proved a jolly occasion, and plans are now underway for Easter events.
The coffee shop in the church porch takes place every Tuesday between 10.30 to 12.00 everyone is most welcome to attend.
Bike Ride, Walk & Drive 2025 winners announced!
Thurning, St Andrew is the winner of the Most Improved Church and will receive a prize of £1,000 at a special presentation later this year.
Hilary, who took part in the Bike Ride, Walk & Drive for the first time in 2025, has given us her reasons for taking part and why she chose Thurning church to benefit from her efforts. You can read her story here.
The Lord Lieutenant’s Certificate, for 2025 for the most amount raised, will be presented to Paul Nicholls, who took part in the event to benefit Burgh Castle, St Peter & St Paul. He raised the fantastic sum of £3,028.75 and managed to fill an impressive fifteen sponsor forms.
Mr Nicholls, a stalwart of the event, attributes the sum raised to his sponsors who gave generously because he had not been able to take part in 2024. He will receive his certificate at a special presentation later this year. He has also confirmed that he will be taking part again this September.
We would like to extend our thanks to Mr Nicholls for his efforts in 2025 and over the years for the Norfolk Churches Trust Bike Ride, Walk & Drive.
Thank you to everyone who took part in the 2025 Bike Ride, Walk & Drive which raised £115,527.99.
The date for your diaries for 2026 is, Saturday 12th September. Keep an eye on our dedicated Bike Ride, Walk & Drive page for news and updates on the event as the date approaches.
Our March Coffee, Clean, & Chat took place at Cockthorpe, All Saints. We were delighted to welcome a group of willing volunteers who swept, dusted and polished this lovely little church which came into the care of the Norfolk Churches Trust on 1st March 1978. A big thank you to those who joined us, we do hope you had an enjoyable morning.
For more on this church and our morning there, follow this link.
April’s Coffee, Clean & Chat will be moving south, taking place at Snetterton, All Saints,NR16 2LR on Tuesday 14th April from 10am to 12.30pm. Please do join us if you can, we would love to see you.
Heritage Skills & Maintenance Day takes place on Saturday 18th April. Taking place across seven churches the activities scheduled for the day are numerous and varied, including and not limited to, flint wall repairs, stained glass and tower repairs, historic lettering, church drainage, water ingress, advice on cleaning monuments and ledger stones, timber roof repairs, eco church, churchyard wildlife, bell restoration, setting up Friends Groups. leadwork, grant advice and more, all the details can be found here.
We have added three additional workshops to the Heritage Skills & Maintenance Day.
Textile Conservation Workshops at St Michael’s Church, Great Cressingham.
Maria Jordan ACR, a leading expert in Textile Conservation will be holding two sessions during the day to offer advice, practical tips and the opportunity for attendees to observe repairs and have a go!
Taking place at 10:30 and 12.30 these sessions are free to attend but we advise you to book a slot to ensure that you are seen.
For more information and to book a place follow this link.
Representatives from the Dereham and District Flower Club will be joining us at Foulden All Saints, IP26 5AA from noon to advise on Sustainable Flower Arranging. They will be demonstrating techniques including a pedestal, a windowsill arrangement and an altar arrangement from noon on the day. They will be happy to answer any questions during and after the demonstration.
The Sustainable Church Flowers Movement began as a grassroots initiative in the small rural parish of Harpley, Worcestershire, the aim to encourage churches, wherever possible to use seasonal and local flowers and foliage, and to phase out single use floral foam, which cannot be recycled or composted.
In February of this year the General Synod passed a motion embracing the principles of the Sustainable Church Flowers Movement, so this event could not be more timely.
Also taking place at Foulden, All Saints. Repairs to the flint churchyard wall by Stephen Capper of SAC Restoration.
Have a go yourself with a hands-on workshop.
There will be three timed sessions throughout the day. Numbers for these are limited, so it is advisable to book early to avoid disappointment.
Morning Sessions – 10.00am and 11.15am follow this link.
Afternoon Session- 1.00pm book here.
Our Winter Lecture Series concluded with two very interesting and informative illustrated talks to members of the Norfolk Churches Trust.
On 20th February Peter McCormack gave us an illuminating talk on A Second Golden Age: British Stained Glass from the Pre-Raphaelites to the Arts and Crafts Movement. See more here.
Followed on Friday 6th March by Tim Knox CVO, Director of the Royal Collection who came to Norfolk for the final of our Winter Lecture Series, Commemorating Kings: Funerals, Tombs and Memorials to the Kings and Queens of England, from Sutton Hoo to today, more here.
Thank you to those who attended these talks which raised a fantastic £4,500, and a special thank you to those who opened their homes to provide unique venues for these events. It is revenue from evenings such as these which enables our grant funding.
Entry to the School Art Competition closes on 17th April, so make sure that your local primary school doesn’t miss out.
The competition will be divided into three age categories: – Reception, Year 1 & Year 2 – Year 3 & Year 4 – Year 5 & Year 6, with 1st and 2nd prizes in each age category.
1st prize – the school will win £500 in art equipment and the artist £100 in art equipment
2nd prize – the school will win £250 in art equipment and the artist £75 in art equipment.
The Finalists artwork will be judged by a celebrity panel, with the prizes being presented by Emma Bridgewater at a special ceremony at Norwich Cathedral in June.
The children of Blakeney Primary School visited St Nicholas Church in their village recently and have been creating art from the objects that they have seen within the building.
We are really looking forward to seeing the results.
For the details of how your local primary school can enter, including application forms, follow this link.
Music most definitely seems to be a theme this year with two special musical offerings coming up this spring.
The first of these is the Heydon Church Opera Recital
On Friday 17th April, St Peter & St Paul Church, Heydon will be welcoming one of Norfolk’s finest musical talents, Jacob Harrison for a Spring Concert.
Inspired by Boticelli’s La Primavera, the concert will be performed by Jacob (Bass-Baritone) accompanied by Mark Jones (Piano).
Concert starts at 7.15pm doors open 7pm
£25 to include interval drink
More information and booking here
Secondly, a special musical evening to celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Norfolk Churches Trust is being held at St Mary Magdalene, Warham, NR23 1NH, the final resting place of Trust founder Billa Harrod.
Taking place on Saturday 30th May from 5.30pm to 6.30pm the concert will be followed by champagne and canapes at The Rectory, Warham,
We are very grateful to Carlos Garcia and Michael Newman, for their hospitality.
The concert, featuring works by Handel and Telemann amongst others, will be performed by the internationally acclaimed Brook Street Band and award winning tenor David de Winter.
Priced at £50 to include drinks reception. For more information and to book, click here.
The Trust has taken delivery of our new branded merchandise for 2026, a china mug in dark blue and white, celebrating 50 years of The Norfolk Churches Trust, and a new range of tea towels in navy, sage green, and summer pink.
The mugs are priced at £15 with the tea towels retailing at £8 each or 2 for £12 (don’t forget to let us know your colour choice). All prices include postage.
These and all of our other merchandise, including our limited-edition Emma Bridgewater pottery can be found in our shop. The proceeds from everything we sell goes into our grant fund to support Norfolk churches.
Perhaps take delivery of one of our new mugs, pop on the kettle and settle down to read our monthly blog.
The blog for March is, My Favourite Church, at least this week! which you can read here, proves what a fickle bunch we can be, especially as there as so many to chose from in Norfolk. There are so many delights to see as we open those church doors.
As part of our 50th anniversary celebrations we will be asking some of our county’s residents just what their favourite Norfolk church is and why, so watch this space!
Thank you to Rob Gladstone for providing our monthly column, always a good read.
As ever thank you to our members and supporters, we couldn’t do what we do without you.
