TWO “at risk” churches in London, and the Sunday school at the Union Chapel, Islington, are to be awarded funding worth more than £1 million by Historic England to help with repair works.
The three sites are currently on the Heritage at Risk Register.
St Andrew’s, Thornhill Square, which was built between 1852 and 1854 to designs by Francis Newman and John Johnson, will receive £431,804. The funds will go towards the church spire, which is in urgent need of repair and is currently under protective netting. The church will receive a further £249,950 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and an additional £103,000 from the Islington charity Cloudesley.
At St Richard’s, Ham, a grant of £428,384 will pay for structural support to protect the building’s roof until further essential repairs can be carried out. It was designed by the post-war architect Ralph Covell, who designed more than 20 churches in the diocese of Southwark.
At the Union Chapel, off Upper Street in Islington, £172,274 is going to the Sunday school for repairs, and to reopen the space for community use. The chapel is best known as a music and speaker venue. It was built in 1876-7 to designs by James Cubitt. Behind the main chapel building is the former Sunday school, lecture hall, and vestry block. The Sunday school will be run by Union Chapel Project as an arts and heritage space. It is currently undergoing restoration, thanks to a repair scheme supported by a £2.3-million grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. A press release from Historic England said that its grant of £172,274 will now enable completion of the project, which began in 2024.
The regional director at Historic England, Tom Foxall, said: “These three special buildings are not only beautiful historic places in need of urgent funding for repairs, but they are all essential to their local communities as important places to meet, bond, worship in, and enjoy. We’re proud to step in to help ensure people can continue to benefit from these magnificent spaces and take pride in the remarkable heritage on their doorstep.”
The director of England, London, and South, at the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Stuart McLeod, said: “London’s historic churches sit at the heart of our communities, shaping the places where people come together and share in their local heritage. By working in close partnership with Historic England, we’re able to maximise the impact of National Lottery investment and ensure that these much-loved buildings receive the urgent care they need.
“Together, we’re not only safeguarding remarkable heritage, but helping these historic places of worship to continue to serve as vibrant, welcoming spaces for everyone, securing their future for generations to come.”
