Hereford monastery given £700,000 grant for restoration works

A monastery in Hereford has been given £700,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund to provide for restoration works to its church and to encourage more visitors.

Belmont Abbey will receive the generous grant for the celebrated Abbey Church, which was built in 1854.

The church is still used by the monastic community for daily services as well as by the local parish.

The money will also be used to help develop a display to showcase some of the Abbey's historic artefacts. It will also be put towards the enlargement of its educational work and improve wheelchair access.

Father Paul Stonham, the Abbot of Belmont, told the BBC: "The Abbey Church is a very important Victorian, Gothic building.

"Quite an important amount of restoration work needs to be done to the roof for example.

"But also part of the grant is to provide better facilities - rather mundane things like a lavatory near the church, which we don't have."