Diocesan News20 Apr 21

Belfast Cathedral receives grant of £62,200 from the Heritage Recovery Fund to help recover from effects of the Covid–19 pandemic

Belfast Cathedral has been awarded £62,200 to help it recover from the impact of the Covid–19 pandemic.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund announced grants to help 50 organisations and 41 individuals adapt, recover and re–open following the impact of the Covid–19 pandemic.

Grants from the Heritage Recovery Fund were awarded to a wide range of organisations and individuals in the heritage sector, from historic sites, attractions and landscapes, to tour guides and specialist heritage conservators.

The funding will help Belfast Cathedral make essential repairs to the Baptistry and Ambulatory whilst the building remains closed.

The Heritage Recovery Fund is part of the £29 million Executive allocation that was made to the Department for Communities to support the arts, culture, heritage and language sectors which have been severely impacted by Covid–19.

This is the latest package of support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the heritage sector across the UK throughout the crisis. Last year, the organisation committed over £600 million of National Lottery and government funding to more than 1,500 heritage organisations, along with expertise and advice on adapting to the pandemic.

Paul Mullan, from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “We are grateful to the Department for Communities for providing this funding and enabling us to help a wide range of organisations and individuals in Northern Ireland’s heritage sector to recover from the current crisis.

“The risks to heritage sites, attractions and organisations from a sudden and dramatic loss of income as a result of the pandemic, have put the heritage and visitor economy in crisis, and this funding will play a vital role in their recovery.

“Heritage has an essential role to play in making communities better places to live, creating economic prosperity and supporting personal wellbeing. All of these are going to be vitally important as we emerge from the current pandemic.”

To find out more about the National Lottery Heritage Fund, go to: www.heritagefund.org.uk