St John's the Baptist Church in Chipping Sodbury has received a £15,000 from the Governments Culture Recovery Fund.

The grant to St John’s will help with running costs and essential maintenance, as well as improving the experience of the building for visitors.

The Parish Church of St John the Baptist, Chipping Sodbury was consecrated in 1284. As the town has grown and expanded, the church has been a significant part of its history and heritage and is a place of architectural interest. It attracts a large number of visitors each year.

The Revd Canon David Bowers, Rector of St John the Baptist, Chipping Sodbury, said: “We are grateful for this grant from the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund which will help us to look to life beyond the pandemic."

The church hosts the annual community Crib Festival, which attracts many hundreds of visitors of all ages, as well as being one of the venues for the Chipping Sodbury Festival and for concerts and other events.

The Revd added: "We are a valuable resource for our local schools and local history groups and we run a popular parent/carer and toddler group in the building during term times.

"All of these have been affected by the pandemic and we now look forward to being ready to continue the long tradition of serving our local community.”

74 organisations are also receiving grants of up to £25,000 from the Covid-19 Emergency Heritage at Risk Response Fund, launched by Historic England and almost quadrupled thanks to the Culture Recovery Fund, to cover maintenance and repairs urgently needed on historic buildings and sites up and down the country.

Ros Kerslake, Chief Executive of the National Lottery Heritage Fund said:

“The Government’s £1.57bn package for culture is unprecedented and it’s important to acknowledge how valuable this has been for our heritage organisations and visitor attractions.

"Although we are not able to support everyone facing difficulties, today’s funding package helps a diverse range of heritage organisations from across the country survive, adapt and plan for a brighter future through the Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage.

“By the end of this financial year we will have distributed almost £600m of Government and National Lottery Funding to heritage organisations. Investing in heritage remains vitally important, creating jobs and economic prosperity, driving tourism, supporting our wellbeing and making our towns, cities, and rural areas better places to live.

"There is a lot more work to do to address the ongoing challenges, but this funding has provided a future for much of our heritage and the organisations that care for it, when it might otherwise have been permanently lost.”

Historic sites including St John’s Baptist Church will receive help to meet ongoing costs and support to restart activity when it is possible to do so safely.

More than £9 million has been allocated by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, which builds on £103 million awarded to more significant historic places last month.

Grants between between £10,000 and £1 million have been awarded to stabilise 77 organisations.