Southwell Minster is seeking urgent financial support to keep its doors open after decades of underinvestment that has left it needing around £20m to safeguard its historic building and grounds.
The Grade I-listed Minster is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, and has served Nottinghamshire for more than 1,000 years.
The present Minster was built between 1108 and 1290, replacing an earlier Saxon church, and became a cathedral in 1884.
The Dean of Southwell, the Very Rev Dr Stephen Evans, said the cathedral does not have the money needed to maintain it, with discussions underway with the Church Commissioners, the Charity Commission and other agencies.
In a statement, Dr Evans said: “Chapter does not have £20 million. Indeed, Chapter’s resources are almost completely exhausted.”
He said the Church Commissioners contribute towards clergy costs and some staff salaries, but cannot fund the upkeep or repair of the cathedral building or land.
This leaves the Chapter, the body responsible for running the cathedral, heavily dependent on income from visitors, worshippers, events, its shop and restaurant.
“If the Grade I-listed Cathedral Church, Southwell Minster, is to keep its doors open, Chapter has to seek additional sources of funding urgently,” he said.
The warning follows an intervention in the House of Commons by Newark MP Robert Jenrick, who asked for help securing emergency support from the Church Commissioners.
Jenrick warned that the cathedral could have to close next year without assistance. He appealed to Commons Leader Sir Alan Campbell to press the Commissioners to help.
Campbell said he would raise the situation with the Second Church Estates Commissioner.
In a separate post on X, Jenrick called for greater support for cathedrals and parish churches, alongside government action to reduce repair costs.
“Our Cathedrals are amongst the greatest achievements of our civilisation. It’s our duty to cherish and hand them to future generations intact,” he wrote.
“Sadly many are struggling financially with crippling backlogs of repairs.”
He described Southwell Minster as facing “the worst financial crisis in centuries”, adding: “There’s even the real possibility that it might have to close its doors.”
Jenrick also called on the Government to reinstate VAT relief on repairs to listed places of worship in the forthcoming Budget.
Dr Evans said Southwell’s difficulties reflected a wider problem, with around a dozen English cathedrals facing similar circumstances.
He Jenrick’s parliamentary intervention was "very timely" not only for Southwell Minster but for other cathedrals struggling to fund their upkeep.
