All Saints' Church in Sudbury awarded £153,000 heritage grant to help finance restoration projects

A 12th century church in Sudbury has been awarded a substantial financial boost to fund a series of key restoration and community projects.

All Saints’ Church has successfully bid for a £153,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, a scheme which provides financial support to community projects across the UK.

The grant will enable the restoration of the east window, a large area of stained glass, which was installed at the church in 1882, while a neighbouring window on the north side is scheduled to undergo major repair work to ensure it remains in keeping with the rest of the features.

Churchwarden Dr Malcolm Offord said the team was delighted to have received financial support to enable the cherished feature to be reinstated.

“There was no way we could have raised that amount of money alone,” he said. “It’s a fantastic piece of heritage to be preserved.

“The stained glass in the window is in an extremely poor state of repair and we are incredibly grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for recognising the importance of both the window, and the building as a whole, as part of this area.”

The project will focus on engaging a wide range of people from the town.

“The various projects and events we are planning around the restoration work will involve the whole community, looking both at the history of All Saints and looking to the future, with a beautifully restored window,” he said.

A portion of the grant is being used to appoint a dedicated heritage activity officer, who will be responsible for organising a series of workshops for both adults and children, while carrying out research into the history of the church to provide visitors with an insight into the site.

Mr Offord added: “A large part of the building goes back to the 12th century, while the main site was built in the 14th and 15th centuries, so there’s lots to discover.”