Work under way to save landmark church

A “mammoth” project is under way to save a landmark medieval Herefordshire church from ruin for the community and visiting public.

The Grade II listed St Mary’s church, Kenderchurch near Pontrilas, which closed for worship nearly 20 years ago, is now being looked after by London-based charity Friends of Friendless Churches.

“If we hadn’t stepped in, eventually the roof would have fallen in and no one could restore it,” its director Rachel Morley said.

With her bid for listed building consent to restore the building approved, scaffolding is now up and preliminary work under way.

This is in the hands of Powys-based specialist contractors Jones & Fraser, which she describes as “a great team who have already worked on a project of ours at Llangua just over in Monmouthshire”.

Director Tom Jones said: “You never know what’s there until you start investigating, and we are still at early stages here. But the roof will be the big bit, it has rot and woodworm, and quite a bit of stonework could also need replacing.”

Like many of the area’s historic churches, the church “was heavily restored” by the Victorians, though medieval elements remain, project architect Andrew Faulkner said.

Ms Morley added: “Many were in poor condition even then, so without their intervention we would probably have lost them.”

Even so, putting it on a sound structural footing will cost the thick end of half a million pounds – which she admits is “pretty mammoth, but not surprising considering how long it has been out of use”.

While this will largely be funded by the charity’s national supporters, neighbouring business Pontrilas Sawmills has stepped in with £50,000 for the work.

“What happens in the locality matters to us,” the firm’s financial director Eric Hilton said. “The church is a landmark worth preserving, and we wanted to contribute to that.”

When work is completed around the end of the year, “it will be open every day, and we will be looking for people locally to help look after it”, Ms Morley added.

“It will be around for a while yet. There’s now every chance it will outlive the sawmill.”