Originally a collegiate church, it was not selected as a bishop’s seat during the Dissolution of the Monasteries; nevertheless, it survived as a parish church and is now part of the Greater Churches Group and a Grade I listed building. In addition to preparing the Quinquennial Inspection, the role includes providing general advice on the day-to-day care of the building, forward planning of repairs and maintenance in conjunction with the Minster Surveyor and various ongoing projects which have recently included repairs to stained glass windows, accessibility improvements, visitor facilities, floor repairs, reordering, new lighting and fire detection systems and repairs and replacement of pinnacles.
The biggest challenges currently facing the Minster are the need to replace the leadwork to all the High roofs and to repair and conserve the Great East and West Windows. We have been working with the Minster in preparing a ten-year programme to complete this work and in assisting with fundraising activities in conjunction with the “Two churches one town” organisation.