Historic Buildings

St Mary's - the next nine hundred years

St Mary’s, Kirkby Lonsdale, is a Grade One listed Major Church, the largest community building in our rural market town and in the heart of the Conservation Area. Dating from the early C12th, St Mary’s is listed Priority A on the Heritage at Risk Register. Through this project, we will secure St Mary’s “for all, for all time” by addressing the wet tower, leaking roof and reordering the interior to create flexible, vibrant spaces which better serves residents and visitors. We want to transform how people experience our heritage through engaging interpretation, tours of the church and tower roof-top, and reigniting cultural heritage through a new bell-ringing school. We will strengthen our role as a community hub by expanding our events programme, developing a café with the vocational secondary school and providing the town’s first Changing Places toilet. Environmental improvements and new income streams will ensure long-term sustainability and resilience.