ENGLISH HERITAGE LEADER COMING TO COUNTY
For immediate release 23rd August 2010
The Chair of English Heritage, Baroness Kay Andrews is visiting The Diocese of Hereford, the Church of England locally, on Tuesday 24th August to look at some of the projects supported by the organisation. The Baroness has a full programme, visiting four different churches during the day.
“English Heritage have been very generous, not only financially, in their support for some quite radical projects in our Grade I listed churches in Herefordshire,” said Wendy Coombey, Community, Partnership and Funding Officer for the Diocese, who will be accompanying the Baroness during the day.
Baroness Andrews will visit St Leonard’s Church in Yarpole in the morning. The church is now home to the village shop and post office. The building within a building has also been designed with a first floor café with the kitchen built into the roof space! The enterprise is run by volunteers from the village.
In the afternoon, the Baroness will visit St Peter’s Church in Peterchurch where the nave has been revamped to enable the delivery of Children’s Services to the sparsely populated Golden Valley area of the County. It is also the first church in the country to have a library branch in the tower. She will meet the vicar, Simon Lockett, who will explain how the church now functions, not only as a place of worship but as a shared space for the whole community.
“The Diocese of Hereford is an excellent example of the hard work and commitment that congregations across the country invest in their places of worship. They help to ensure the future of some of England’s most beautiful buildings for all of us to enjoy, whether we want to be worshippers or not. And the imaginative approaches adopted, such can be seen here in Hereford, also ensure that those places of worship stay relevant for communities in the 21st century,” said Baroness Andrews.
Her next visit will be to another St Peter’s, in the village of Peterstow, just north of Ross-on-Wye where the nave has become St Peter’s Hall, creating a new space for a wide range of activities including a fortnightly lunch club which attracts more than 50 people and Tai Chi for the over 50s.
“Both Peterchurch and Peterstow have created new space for new activities, which could not happen before,” said Wendy. “The extended use of these historic places ensures a twenty first century use for thousand year old buildings which remain at the heart of the communities they serve.”
Baroness Andrews will complete her visit with a quick look inside St Michael’s Church at Brampton Abbots, which is closed to the public due to its unsafe roof.
Note to editors: Reporters/photographers are very welcome at all points of the day. Please contact Wendy Coombey 01584 871088 mob: 07738 226625
All the above churches have received financial support from English Heritage.
The itinerary for the day is below:
Itinerary for the Visit of Baroness Andrews
Tuesday, 24th August 2010
10.15 Depart Hereford for Yarpole
11.00 Arrive in Yarpole to be met by Andrew Thompson.
12.00 Depart Yarpole for lunch at Poston Mill
1.00 Arrive at Poston Mill
2.00 Arrive at Peterchurch to be met by: Rev Simon Lockett
3.00 Depart Peterchurch for Peterstow
3.30 Arrive at Peterstow to be met by Gill Wylie, Church Warden.
4.15 Depart for Brampton Abbotts
5.15 Arrive Back in Hereford
Please note that all timings are approximate and depend on volume of traffic and road works.