In June 2008 the Heritage Lottery Fund awarded a grant of £47,200 to restore the historic bells in St. Mary’s Church at Long Preston and to uncover the history of the village. The history part of the project is to last 5 years. The grant is being paid in three tranches, beginning with 50% upfront, followed by 40% when the first amount is used and the final 10% when all the things we have promised to do have been achieved.

 

The aims of the project are outlined in the bid and are now in the contract.

To qualify for the money, we have to collect photos, minutes, etc and keep accounts with thorough paper trails and present these as evidence that the aims of the project are being met.

 

The aims of the project are as follows:

• Develop the church's history and restore the bells.
• Oral History Project.
• Research into and publication of Long Preston's history.
• Outreach activities such as work with school, workshops, exhibitions and talks.
• Involvement of the community in their heritage.

 

The grant towards the Restoration of the Bells is £19,980, which together with the generous help from Long Preston Parish Council, and other donations including Heather's Sponsored walk and from The Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers, covers the total cost of £30,000.

 

The history element of the project has £27,220 to spend over the five years. This is broken down in detail in our supporting documents to be used on specified activities, there are two main areas:

 

Up to £17,000 over 5 years for:

• Equipment - such as computer, scanner and printer
• Training - to use archiving equipment, carry out surveys etc.
• Publicity
• Exhibitions and publications - such as walks leaflets, church history booklet.
• Talks and workshops.
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And finally £10,000 to pay for the publication of a book in the fifth year of the project (2013) drawing together many of the photographs, maps, documents and stories we are gathering into a Heritage Project History of Long Preston.