Historic Buildings

#PW Capeli Cymru: Preserving the Nonconformist Heritage of Wales

Nonconformist chapels, the national architecture of Wales, provide a uniquely Welsh sense of place across towns, villages and rural landscapes. Representing 300 years of religious, political, and cultural history, chapels are facing unprecedented challenges. Declining congregations are struggling to maintain large and aging buildings, leading to widespread and increasing closures. With three-quarters of chapels already estimated to be closed for worship, the loss of important tangible and intangible heritage as buildings are converted or demolished, objects disposed of, and memories forgotten, is substantial. During this project the Royal Commission will build staff capacity to develop and implement robust strategies to ensure support for, and preservation of, chapel heritage, working with stakeholders across the nonconformist denominations, archive, museum, and built environment sectors, and communities. The production of a toolkit will aid the orderly closure of chapels and strategies for increasing understanding of, and engagement with, chapel heritage, alongside those for recording, retention and reuse, ensuring that nationally important heritage will be preserved for future generations.