St Paul’s Church, King Cross, Halifax, noted for its acoustics and an unusual and highly colourful west window has received initial first round support from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for its tower project.
The tower project aims to repair the deteriorating tower as well as make people more aware the heritage of this Grade II building.
The grant is for up to £186,600 including development funding of £20,900 to help St Paul’s progress their plans to apply for a full grant at a later date. The project will be further developed over the next 12 months and work to the tower should commence in summer 2018. The total cost of the project is expected to be around £233,000.
The project aims to carry out essential conservation work to the tower including the remarkable west window depicting The New Jerusalem descending on Halifax’s ‘Dark Satanic Mills’.
Unforuntately the style of pointing carried out at the time the tower was built was in fashion but unfortunately allows water to get inside the walls and deteriorate the stone work.
During the development stage St Paul's will be collating information about the heritage of the building to produce information in a variety of formats so that people can learn more about the architectural importance of the building.
St Paul's serves as a place of worship for the growing Anglo-Catholic congregation and attracts worshipers from across Calderdale and beyond. also
host the Halifax congregation of the Ukranian Catholic church.
Today St Paul’s continues to be a place of worship for an ever growing congregation and is used by community groups. St Paul’s is open daily as a place for quiet reflection and prayer. The wonderful acoustics make it a superb venue for concerts, which are usually free to attend. The church also hosts community events and rent their Parish Room to community organisations.
Completed in 1912, St Paul's has served the Parish of King Cross for over a century. It is one of the few remaining and minimally altered churches designed by Sir Charles Nicholson, one of the leading church architects of his time. The tower was in the original plans but money ran out and it was only completed in 1937 thanks to a legacy left by Revd Canon Hugh Bright.
Commenting on the award, Steven Mudd, one of the Churchwardens at St Paul's, said:
“ The church has been a centre of worship and a location bringing the community of King Cross together for over 100 years, and it’s great to know that we are a step closer to preserving this part of Halifax’s heritage for another century.”