St Grada and Holy Cross Church at Grade Ruan on the Lizard Peninsula has been described as “at huge risk” due to its failing roof, which is leaving it exposed to the elements. The timbers and slates are in such poor condition that water is often flooding the Grade I Listed church and debris rains down onto the pews. Plants are also creeping into the church, growing between the stones and in the gaps in the walls.
Plants are even growing through the walls (Image: Steve Drysdale/National Churches Trust) The remote location of the church means that it is constantly battered by high winds and rains, with the charity say it was “remarkable” the Victorian roof has lasted as long as it has. The church is already on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register. While the community has been desperately trying to raise enough funds to pay for urgent repairs – raising £90,000 to date, with £60,000 of that coming from community fundraising projects – so far they have been unable to get the work carried out.
Now the National Churches Trust has stepped in with a £30,000 grant for repairs to the 160-year-old roof, to help make the church watertight again. The roof slates will be replaced and new gutters and drainpipes will be added. Paint peeling from the damp walls inside (Image: Steve Drysdale/National Churches Trust) On the recommendation of the charity, the church will also receive a £5,000 Wolfson Fabric Repair Grant from the Wolfson Foundation and £10,000 from the H.