Worshippers and villagers were devastated when callous thieves stripped the lead off the roof at St Augustine’s, last October.
When water leaked into the interior at Scissett’s only church, architects advised the Vicar, the Rev Joy Cousans to close the Grade II listed building on health and safety grounds.
The mostly elderly congregation was horrified to discover that the cost of repairs and scaffolding would be over £50,000.
But the vicar and her little flock did not lose faith. They channelled their energies into fundraising - and their prayers have been answered.
They have been awarded a grant of £40,000 from the Government’s Listed Places of Worship Roof Repair Fund to completely repair and renovate the roof.
The Rev Cousans said: “We were devastated when the lead was stripped from the roof. A lot of the congregation have been coming here for decades and there was a lot of upset about what happened.
“It has been an uphill challenge to try and get the money together, and when we opened the letter from the government body, we were absolutely delighted.
“We are still continuing to fund raise, but the grant means we can go ahead with the repairs.”
Pupils at the next-door Scissett First School have raised £1,000 through a CD of their singing and a collection. The church has organised a community meal for early July and other ideas are in the pipeline.
The theft has had another positive spin-off. It has brought the community together and made villagers realise the strength of feeling towards St Augustine’s. Church leaders are now looking at ways of making the church more freely available to local residents and organisations.
The Rev Cousans added: “About 90 people attended the meeting about the future of the church and we have set up Friends of St Augustine’s.
“While we were devastated at the theft, it has ended up giving us a new lease of life and demonstrated that local people very much want St Augustine’s to stay open.
“We have turned a disaster story into something positive and the future is quite exciting.”
The Rev Kate Curry, curate, added: “The response from local people has been most encouraging, and we want to create a usable space for the 21st century.”
The replacement roof material will not be lead and that the roof will be fully alarmed.
St Augustine’s dates back to 1840 when it was built by the Norton family, of Bagden Hall and Nortonthorpe Hall, who were mill and land owners.
