Happenings Lately - Impact Updates So Far
Last Sunday we shared these highs, lows, prayer points and ways to get involved with our church family:
What is Impact?
Impact is our project to restore and reorder our church building, St Michael le Belfrey
We started planning it in 2018, and construction started in 2024. It’s due to finish in autumn 2026.
What have been some of the highlights of Impact over the last year?
The Pews and Gallery were removed by Pinnacle Conservation in Winter 2023; wood was reused as furniture, small mementoes and sold to other places including a hotel on the Yorkshire coast, which now houses the Narthex screen!
The Contractor was appointed, Simpson York Ltd, an experienced local firm.
The Scaffolding went up - internally and externally, allowing access to the roof, walls and windows which are all being worked on
Paint was removed from the internal walls
The Roof came off! 18th century lead was removed and catalogued, and beams were assessed and are being replaced where needed
High-level stonework repairs started, and delicate works around the window arches and the mullions
Cabling was put into the roof spaces for lighting and power
The new Entrance from the church into Parish Centre, where offices and meeting rooms are located, was knocked through!
What have some of the challenges been this year?
Listed Places of Worship VAT reclaim scheme: The cap was lowered significantly, meaning we could only claim back £200,000 instead of the £1.4m we had been budgeting. Lots of lobbying, media and planning about how to address this took place in the first half of 2025 Praise the Lord we had a donor come forward to fill the gap! We are continuing to lobby DCMS in case of change for other churches.
Significant increases to stonework repairs and therefore the cost of that; but the “chancel repair liability” payment we will receive has increased to help with this, and some smaller cost savings have been made to ensure we have enough contingency to cover the remaining repairs and conservation works.
What’s coming up next?
Removing the aisle roofs and repairing timbers
New lead on the roof to make it ready for many more generations
Completing the extensive stonework repairs
Stained glass window repairs will start in earnest over the summer at Barley Studios workshop
Our Hhpe is that internal scaffolding will start to come down over the summer so the floor can be fully opened up and prepped for underfloor heating system.
What can we as the church family be doing to support Impact at the moment?
Pray:
Protection over the site and construction team
Creativity and problem-solving for our architects
Successful sale of a PCC-owned property which is part of the funding plan
Deadlines being met so the construction team can hand over to us in Autumn 2026
Give:
Our financing plan includes a variety of sources of income! The three highest are: about 50% big gifts; about 10% from chancel repair liability which will come from the Church Commissioners; and about 6% from the church family.
You can support Impact by:
Making a one-off financial gift or pledging ongoing regular giving - click here
Doing some fundraising yourself! Organise an event, sell some items on Vinted or at a car boot sale, run the Yorkshire Marathon in October... - find out more
Thank you for your ongoing support and excitement for Impact!
For Media Enquiries, Interviews and Further Information:
Please contact Gillian Shepherd, Impact Project Manager: on 07795 644680, email gillian.shepherd@belfrey.org or Amber Boydell, Operations Manager: email amber.boydell@belfrey.org.
See www.belfrey.org/impact