Skip to content

'Special' synagogue gets £232,000 funding boost

Lara KingGrimsby
Lara King Front of a brick built synagogue. It has long arched stained windows with one large round stained glass window at the front in the middle. The building has a triangular central roof with sloping roofs either side. There are blue skies and trees in full leaf to the leftLara King
The synagogue was built in the late 19th Century and needs further restoration work

A Victorian synagogue in Grimsby has secured £232,500 of funding to allow restoration work to continue.

The Sir Moses Montefiore Memorial Synagogue is one of the first recipients of Historic England's new Places of Worship Renewal Fund after suffering years of damp and flooding.

The money will fund structural repairs as well as restoration of the synagogue ark - a cabinet that holds the Torah scrolls.

Consecrated in 1888, it is the last surviving purpose-built synagogue in Lincolnshire.

President of the congregation John Bowers said: "Many communities have closed their synagogues so it's a very special building.

"It's absolutely vital to have the money because we're too small a community to generate that support."

Grimsby was the third largest centre of Jewish immigration in the UK, after London and Hull, with more than 100,000 Jewish people arriving there in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Many went to America, but some stayed in the Lincolnshire port.

Lara King Man with grey hair and a grey beared smiling, he's wearing grey glasses, a white shirt and black jacket. He's standing in front of a wooden pulpit and a burgundy velvet curtain which has gold tassles and 3 gold Star of David's.Lara King
President of the synagogue John Bowers has welcomed the new funding to restore the building

Hannah Mayhew, from the charity Heritage Lincolnshire which has worked with the congregation to support the restoration work, said: "The money is for work which will safeguard the synagogue for a lot longer.

"There'll be roof repairs and structural repairs so it can stay open for future generations.

"This funding from Historic England will basically mean the whole building can be protected and it'll be back to how it was when it first opened."

Lara King Inside a synagogue with wooden pews on the right and left. In the middle is a raised area where sermons are delivered. It has a wooden surround with wooden doors and a cabinet with a red and gold velvet covering with religious texts on it. At the back is an area with red velvet curtains and 3 gold Star of David's. Above the pews on both sides are wooden balconies.Lara King
The synagogue is still used by the Jewish community but needs further restoration work

The funding is part of a major government drive to restore churches and revitalise historic buildings across England, with a total of £92m being allocated over a four-year period,.

Nearby Grimsby Minster has received £324,174 from the fund for repairs to its tower, including pigeon protection, andrestoration of the historic clock, which was installed in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee.

Heritage Minister Baroness Twycross said: "Nothing tells the stories of our nation quite like the historic buildings at the heart of our communities, but too often they are a far cry from their former glory with leaking roofs and crumbling stonework.

"Thanks to this funding, the much-loved buildings that fill our hometowns with character will be keeping the doors open to communities for years to come."

Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.

Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices