A CHURCH is having to find more than £750,000 to repair its crumbling infrastructure which is putting the 19th century building in jeopardy - though its priest is doing his best to see it as an opportunity to bring the community together.
St John the Baptist Church in Cudworth has been facing structural issues that are particularly affecting the west window masonry, roof and plastering.
This is adding to ongoing problems, like tired paintwork and much-needed redecorations, to create a costly challenge for the church’s congregation.
Canon Darren Percival BEM told the Chronicle: “I took over in January last year and was obviously taken aback by the fabric of the church.
“Within the Church of England we have inspections every five years of all the churches.
“The team came last year and the amount of recommended work was quite astounding really.
“We’ve got one window that’s held precariously in place and it’s expected to cost £280,000 just to fix that.
“The scale of it is quite significant - everything needs decorating as well, the walls are no longer white but grey.”
Altogether, the required work is expected to cost around £750,000.
Though the determined clergyman isn’t ready to give up in the face of such a large cost, as he is preparing to work with his congregation and the wider village to preserve the historic structure.
“I’ve spoken to the congregation with regards to what we’re up against,” he added.
“At some of our recent public services like carol concerts I’ve also made people in the village aware.
“I’ve certainly not come to close down the church - I’ve come to get my hands dirty in service of the Almighty.
“We’re going to make sure we get the church functional for the community - it’s the only building of historic significance in the village.
“It’s a place that’s stood the test of time.”
Fr Percival took over from long-serving David Nicholson, who managed the church for more than two decades before his retirement.
Like his predecessor, he’s determined to keep the church serving the community as best as he can and is already planning to shave his legs at a fundraising event in April, and is looking into taking part in a sponsored parachute jump, wing walk or zip wire, which he says he’d ‘do tomorrow if the opportunity came’.
Now, he is meeting up with local businesses and community groups to organise fundraising events as he prepares for a long journey to bring the church back to its former glory.
While it may seem daunting though, he is treating it as an opportunity to improve the facilities and bring the heritage and culture of the village into the church.
“I’m in the process of working with the church architect on a project to change the damaged window from plain glass to stained glass.
“It would depict the heritage and history of the village - something that shows off the mining past or brass bands through the work of a community project.
“This isn’t a museum piece, it still needs to be used by the community.
“It’s a building for the community, we take services there and groups continue to use it to this day.
“We’ve just got to keep on going really, I’m here for the long haul.”
