Northamptonshire has a remarkable array
of medieval churches, as well as many fi ne
churches and chapels from later centuries.
As John Betjeman described it: “Northampton
above all counties has variety, originality and
elegance in its architecture”. There is hardly
a medieval church in the county which is
without beautiful stonework and, of course,
those soaring spires.

Northamptonshire Historic Churches Trust
(NHCT) is celebrating its 60th birthday this
year. It exists to make grants for the care of
churches in Northamptonshire. It is part of a
network of independent trusts in each county,
which together lobby nationally for our
unique heritage of places of worship. The
Trust responds to applications from individual
churches and makes grants of between £250
and £5,000 to help prime the pump and fi nd
the balance between what a church can
raise from its own efforts and grants from
elsewhere. Many congregations bear witness
to the encouragement that this gives to those
involved in the diffi cult and time-consuming
business of caring for churches. The NHCT
keeps its administrative costs to an absolute
minimum; all the work is undertaken by
volunteers. Half the money raised by
individual churches is returned to the
church raising the money and all the
money retained goes to helping with
the preservation of the wonderful
inheritance of Northampton-shire’s churches, many now in very
small communities.

All told, in recent years, NHCT has made total grants to
Northamptonshire churches of the order of £45,000 per annum.
This has really helped churches in their fund-raising and made
a signifi cant improvement to the fabric of those buildings, many
of which are supported by small, but loyal, congregations. In
addition to repairs to the structure of churches and their fi xtures
and fi ttings, such as monuments and stained glass, the Trust
has also assisted in making the best use of churches for today’s
needs, with repairs to services, and the installation of lavatories
and kitchens. All this is intended to keep our churches in good
working order.

To achieve this, the Trust, as an independent charity, has to
raise funds, which it does through individual donations and
legacies. The main annual fund-raising event is ‘Ride and
Stride’, in which sponsored participants cycle or walk between
as many churches as they choose. This is held on the second
Saturday of September each year; this year it takes place on
Saturday 12th September.

Everyone who takes part says it is a most enjoyable and
friendly event, and the funding raised really makes a difference
to the churches of Northamptonshire which we all value.
To fi nd out more about this event, and about the work of the
Trust generally, and how you can make application for a grant
(with further details of what we do and do not support), do look
at our website, www.nhct.org.uk, or contact the Chairman, John

Northamptonshire Historic Churches Trust

 Northamptonshire Historic Churches Trust