A Millennium of History in West Suffolk: National Lottery Heritage Fund Project
St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds, along with its partners West Suffolk Council and English Heritage, has received initial support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for The Abbey of St Edmund: A Millennium of History in West Suffolk, it was announced today. The Abbey of St Edmund was once one of the greatest abbeys in medieval England. It was a focus for international pilgrimage, and it played a key role in the formation of Magna Carta.
The project aims to conserve and protect the ruins; build a visitor centre, west cloister, and network of footpaths; and use digital technology to provide exciting interpretation for all ages and interests. There will be a huge range of learning and volunteering activities built around events, programmes and exhibitions. The project will link up with other heritage attractions nearby and further afield, giving communities and visitors more opportunities to access the rich heritage of town and county.
Made possible by National Lottery players, development funding of £729,553 has been awarded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to help the Cathedral and its partners progress plans to apply for a full Heritage Fund grant at a later date.
photo credit: Owen Chad Cox
The Abbey of St Edmund is very important to the local community – 29 local organisations have come together to form the Abbey of St Edmund Heritage Partnership, to care about and promote the ruins. The Abbey site currently enjoys over one million visits each year as people walk through the town’s free to enter public gardens, where the ruins are situated.