Following the news that Southwell Minster faces closure unless it can find £20 million in funding, a representative of Association of English Cathedrals (AEC) has said that grandiose architecture can sometimes hide the difficult reality of funding these historic monuments.
Anna Pitt, Executive Director of the AEC, described the challenges faced by cathedrals across the country to make ends meet and keep their buildings going.
“Cathedrals receive no statutory government funding, only modest distributions from the Church Commissioners for clergy stipends and some staff costs," she said.
“They rely instead on donations, legacies, grants and the income they generate themselves, and all have to be creative in building an economy around them, particularly as rising employment, utility and cost of living bills hit everyone.”
The Dean of Southwell, the Very Rev Dr Stephen Evans, recently said that the cathedral’s resources “are almost completely exhausted” and that the cost of maintaining the Grade I listed building after years of underinvestment was £20 million.
It costs around £3,600 per day to run Southwell Minster, although this pales in comparison to the £30,000 per day required to keep the likes of Canterbury Cathedral and York Minster going.
Unlike Canterbury and York, though, Southwell Minster does not charge an entrance fee, describing itself as "a place of welcome for everyone". It instead invites visitors to pay a £5 donation. However, the Minster said that the current average donation per visitor is only £1.44.
The £20 million is actually the repair gap and does not cover the day-to-day running costs of the cathedral, including music, worship, education, clergy, staff, and the general expenses incurred in keeping the building open to the public.
"Without external assistance we expect to run out of money to fund our daily operations in 2027," the Minster said in a further update to supporters.
Evans confirmed that talks with the Church Commissioners and other agencies are underway.
At present the Church Commissioners contribute to paying for some of the staff and clergy of Southwell, but not towards the repair and upkeep of the building and grounds.
The Minster added, "The situation is very serious, but not hopeless."
In recent years the Church Commissioners have been criticised for their commitment to projects like slavery reparations and net zero, with critics often calling for greater funding for local parish churches., many of which also struggle with maintenance costs.
A recent report by a pair of Anglican academics put forward a radical plan to cut down on the number of staff at diocesan level and also to cut the number of bishops and dioceses to 30. The report’s authors argue the drastic measures are necessary to avert “financial disaster” in the Church of England and revitalise local parish ministry.
