Restoration work at Newport Minster has seen the building removed from the Historic England At Risk Register after more than 10 years. The Minster was accorded Grade 1 listing in October 1953 but has been deemed ‘at risk’ since 2012. Now, thanks to funding support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, National Churches Trust and Historic England, as well as local fundraising and a major gift from Urs and Francesca Schwarzenbach, the external building work is complete. Rev. Emma Cooksey from Parish of Newport and Carisbrooke with Gatcombe, says:
“After many years of hard work, we are so pleased to have reached this point in our journey. It has been down to the dedication of staff, volunteers and Friends who have worked tirelessly to move this project forward through difficult times. We can’t wait to unveil the new building in spring next year.”
While the final phase of construction takes place, the Minster has been closed since October 2022 while work continues inside. This includes stabilising the floors, installing new accessible toilet facilities, a new kitchen, meeting rooms and a new underfloor heating system. There will also be new information panels to help the 30,000 annual visitors understand more about the history of the Minster. The Heritage at Risk programme helps to understand the overall state of England’s historic sites and identify those sites that are most at risk of being lost as a result of neglect, decay or inappropriate development. Jacqueline Gazzard, Chair of the Friends of Newport Minster adds:
“Taking the Minster off the At Risk Register is another milestone and it is so exciting to see the Minster start to come to life again. Thanks to all the funders who have made this happen, the Island will have a wonderful church at the heart of the Island and a building ready to work for our community for another one hundred and sixty years”
Matthew 6:24
Seems the church is bowing to the money master. Francesca Schwarzenbach is associated with VAT fraud and art trafficking.