Bonsall church to get running water after 800 years

The medieval church is to finally get running water inside the church after 800 years.

As part of an exciting new project at the Grade II* Listed church, which dates back to the 13th century, an accessible toilet, a kitchen and seating and welcome area will be installed in the building. This will open up the activities St James the Apostle is able to host at the church and provide a welcome relief for the team.

The project will be able to go ahead, thanks to a share in a £478,110 urgent funding pay-out from the National Churches Trust - the UK's leading independent charity that helps to keep churches open.

A £15,000 National Churches Trust Grant will help to pay for new kitchen facilities and a disabled toilet, ensuring the church can thrive today and tomorrow.

Creating a kitchen in the church will help the church to welcome even more people into the building. It will make the running of the church’s community café – which is open three days a week –much smoother, with its volunteers able to run the entire project from the church.

The accessible toilet will also ensure the church is a welcome and safe place for families, people with disabilities and older people.

Once the kitchen, toilet and seating area has been installed, the church has plans to use the church as a warm space, which will be hugely beneficial to the local community during the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and to help combat loneliness.

"The National Churches Trust is excited to be able to support St James Apostle church to enable them to install a new kitchen, toilet and seating area in their beautiful building. This will help to keep the church open and serving local people," shares Claire Walker, Chief Executive of the National Churches Trust.

“Whether seeking quiet reflection, access to community services or a place to worship, the National Churches Trust helps hundreds of churches each year and with the support of local people, keeps them thriving today and tomorrow.”

The church dates back to the 13th century and is home to the highest altar in the UK, which you can find in the north wall.

Hear from St James the Apostle what the grant means to them

“We are ‘over the moon’ to have received this generous grant from the National Churches Trust. It will help us so much in realising our goals for the church and what we offer here in Bonsall," a spokesperson from the church said.

“Now we are able to move forward with the project to install an accessible toilet and to help with starting our much needed kitchen. We are really fortunate to have a dedicated group of volunteers who help run the cafe. Our visitors and community will be delighted to know they will no longer need to go outside to do so in the shed!”

“It will be incredible to have the luxury of hot running water so that the washing up can be done in the church. We are aiming to provide facilities to bring the building into the 21st century, where it can be open and welcoming for the whole community. We hope it will be utilised by local groups, allow us to hold events and provide a warm meeting space for people who are new to the village or simply want to chat with a friendly face.”

“I can’t say thank you enough for the grant we’ve received. This will make such a difference to our project becoming a reality.”

Significant help for churches

43 churches across the UK will stay open and in good repair thanks to £478,110 of funding awarded and recommended by the National Churches Trust in this latest round of grants.

In 2023, the National Churches Trust made over 180 grant awards to churches throughout the UK, with funding totalling more than £2 million.

The National Churches Trust helps churches through its extensive grants programme. Grants are available for churches of any Christian denomination that are open for regular worship to fund urgent repairs, maintenance, installing toilets or kitchens and feasibility studies to develop projects.

If you would like to help even more churches, like St James the Apostle, stay open and in good repair, you can find out more here.