Updates on the Vicars' Close Project
Welcome to the Vicars’ Close Project Blog, where we share updates, insights, and behind-the-scenes stories from this exciting initiative.
Join us as we explore the journey of revitalizing Vicars’ Close, celebrating our heritage, and engaging with the community. Stay tuned for news, opportunities to get involved, and a closer look at the transformation ahead!
For information about the project, please visit the Vicars’ Close Project page.
December 2024
by Crystal Johnson
Despite it seeming quiet on the surface, our design team have been busily working on detailed plans for both the conservation of the buildings and the new visitor offer. There is still a lot to do but we are planning to tender for contractors in Spring, with work beginning on site next Summer. In the New Year we will also be refining the content of the visitor offer. We will be seeking input, advise and feedback from a broad range of different audiences to ensure that the offer is inclusive and relevant — look out for more information in the New Year.
You may have seen that we have advertised for three new roles to support the project. These will be crucial to helping us deliver our ambitious activity and outreach plans. The Evaluation Consultant will be key not only to reporting but also to monitor how we are doing against our objectives and informing how we change and adapt going forwards. Once these roles are up and running there will also be lots of new opportunities for volunteers to get involved and support the project so I will keep you posted. Please also share these opportunities with anyone you think might be interested – full details of each role are available on the website: Vacancies – Wells Cathedral
Our press and publicity plan is now underway. Look out for a feature in the February edition of Somerset Life and in The Observer on 29 December. In January we are hosting a press day, which has had interest from a good selection of national magazines and newspapers, so we are hopeful of more editorial coverage to promote the project in 2025. I have also been out and about giving talks to update local groups about the project and am looking forward to events with Wells Civic Society and Glastonbury U3A next year .
Finally, an update on our fundraising. Many of you will know that we were tackling a £1.7m shortfall. I am delighted to say that we have managed to reduce that to £774k thanks to recent grants from Carew Pole Charitable Trust, Swire Charitable Trust and an incredibly generous donation of £800k from the Julia Rausing Trust. I’d also like to thank all of the following for their support in getting us this far: The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Medlock Charitable Trust, The Wolfson Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, Benefact Trust, Dickinson Trust, The Pilgrim Trust, Headly Trust and the individuals who have given £3,500 in donations. We are making great progress, but we need to keep up the momentum so please spread the word as every donation, however large or small, makes a real difference.
October 2024
by Crystal Johnson
Significant progress is underway for the Vicars’ Close Project at Wells Cathedral, with the team finalizing grant agreements and preparing for the next phases. Over 400 design drawings are being reviewed to ensure thorough planning, with the aim to tender for contractors to start work in 2025.
The project also includes developing a new visitor experience, focusing on guiding guests and creating engaging narratives that connect with local communities. A diverse team of professionals is collaborating under the project director’s oversight.
Looking ahead, the Cathedral will soon advertise key roles to support community engagement, offering local residents opportunities to participate through events, workshops, and volunteering.
Stay tuned for more exciting news!
This painted panel in Vicars’ Hall depicts the founding of the Close (image c/o Iain MacLeod-Jones)
August 2024
by Crystal Johnson
Wells Cathedral is delighted to have received a £4.4m boost from The National Lottery Heritage Fund towards its campaign to save Vicars’ Close.
The project will cost a total of £7m and includes not only critical conservation works, but also an exciting new visitor experience, which will open up four of the unique buildings to the public for the very first time.
In addition to the incredibly generous support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Cathedral has already raised £1m from generous donors. This leaves £1.6m still to raise from the community and history lovers across the nation to enable completion of this transformational project.
Read the full story here.
October 2023
by Crystal Johnson
There has been a lot of activity on Vicars’ Close over the past month as plans continue apace.
Following a presentation as part of Wells Civic Society’s programme of talks, we were very pleased to give members a tour of the Close and to share our plans for the future. It was lovely to be met with such enthusiasm and interest from all involved.
A group of students from Strode College also visited and spent time filming on the Close. As part of their creative media coursework the students are required to produce an historic documentary, so we are delighted that they chose to focus on Vicars’ Close. During their visit they explored the hidden spaces and interviewed our Project Manager, Crystal Johnson. We very much look forward to seeing the final films!
And there’s more to come — tune into Channel 5 later this year to see the Close and Cathedral featured on a prime-time documentary travelogue series narrated by Alan Titchmarsh, all about the county of Somerset!
June 2023
by Crystal Johnson
Wow, what a fortnight! We welcomed over 3,000 visitors to our temporary exhibition at No. 12 Vicars’ Close and were overwhelmed at the enthusiasm from the public for our plans.
Alongside the exhibition, 22 events were delivered, with many fully booked within hours of going live.
We were delighted that the average rating for events from participants was 9/10 and 99% of attendees would recommend events to friends. We had some lovely comments in the feedback: “Definitely 5 star!”, “It was fantastic”, “I loved it!”.
We are now writing up our consultation findings, submitting funding applications and working towards our planning and listed building application. There is certainly a lot going on, but the positivity and support we have had from across the Cathedral, the local community and all our visitors gives us confidence that things are certainly moving in the right direction.
March 2023
by Crystal Johnson
Local residents and visitors are being invited to complete a short survey to help inform the plans for a new visitor experience at Vicars’ Close.
The survey only takes about five minutes to complete, but the feedback it gives us will be invaluable in helping to develop the project.
We are looking to understand more about our current and potential audiences, what interests them, and what might prevent them from visiting. We are also keen to hear what people would like to see within the new visitor experience at Vicars’ Close.
Knowing that time is precious, anyone completing the survey is being offered the opportunity to win 2 x Gold tier tickets to this year’s Carols by Candlelight concerts in the Cathedral. Worth £100, these tickets sell out fast, but the lucky winner will be able to choose tickets for either 19, 20 or 21 December 2023. More information on the draw is given at the end of the survey.
Click here to complete the survey and be in with a chance of winning!
February 2023
by Crystal Johnson
Would you like to help us to uncover the stories of Vicars’ Close?
We are setting up a friendly, but focussed, working group to research various themes that will feed into a new visitor experience for Vicars’ Close. There is a wealth of material to work with, both existing research and untapped archival sources. We are also hoping to run an oral history project to capture more recent memories.
You may already be an experienced researcher but if not don’t worry, we can offer training and support to help you. You can also offer as much or as little time as you like –so it doesn’t need to be a huge commitment.
Our initial focus is on the themes below, but we are interested to explore other areas too, so we’d welcome your ideas as well as your research support
Interested? To find out more about the opportunity and our plans for Vicars’ Close please come along to our initial meet up (tea/coffee/biscuits supplied!) on at 10.00 a.m. on Thursday 2 March in the Education Room
If you can’t make the meet up but would like to be involved, then please contact Crystal Johnson: crystal.johnson@wellscathedral.org.uk
November 2022
by Crystal Johnson
Following a successful Round 1 application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) earlier this year, the detailed development of the Vicars’ Close project is now underway. We have appointed an incredibly experienced team of professionals who have started the meticulous process of surveying the thirty Grade I listed buildings in the Close.
They will look at the historical significance of every detail, monitor wildlife around the Close, identify what needs to be done to safeguard the buildings for the future and come up with ideas for sharing the stories of the Close with our visitors. All repairs will be subject to both planning and listed building consent, and we are working towards submitting applications for this in late Spring 2023. Once we have approval, we will submit a second round Lottery application in March 2024. We should receive a final decision on funding in Summer 2024, only then can the major restoration work begin on the Close.
Over the coming months we will also be undertaking more research into the history of the Close and the stories it has to tell. There are lots of opportunities to get involved and help develop this exciting project.
The Vicars’ Close project team, October 2022