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Chapel Project to Benefit Community!
Submitted by savsadmin on Thu, 21/01/2010 - 19:56.
The redundant chapel at Southend’s North Road cemetery has won a vibrant new lease of life thanks to almost £1m of Government funding. The grant, from The Office of The Third Sector and administered by the Big Lottery Fund, will be used to transform the dilapidated building into a dynamic new community resource. It will be used by SAVS, and also by new social enterprise businesses.
Alison Semmence, SAVS Chief Executive Officer, said: “This announcement is great news for Southend’s Voluntary and Community Sector."
“We are delighted to be a part of the project which, not only restores the chapel, but also provides a valuable resource for the community.”
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council’s Executive Councillor for Enterprise, Tourism and Regeneration, Councillor John Lamb said: “This funding announcement is tremendous news. It means that North Road Chapel will again be able to serve the community."
“It will benefit Southend residents by helping to kick-start new social enterprise businesses as well as assisting the voluntary sector."
“We are delighted, too, that the work will help preserve a historic building in Southend. The refurbishment will focus on environmentally friendly measures, such as using sustainable materials where possible.”
North Road cemetery was originally created to provide extra burial capacity for St Mary’s Church in Victoria Avenue. The chapel was built in 1879 within the grounds of Prittlewell cemetery, and the Council bought the freehold for £900 on 15th November of that year.
At the time it was regarded a principal piece of architecture in the town, and is locally listed.
Although the cemetery itself is currently near capacity and rarely used, interments are still carried out into family graves. There are a high number of military graves within the cemetery, and there are plans to provide information boards to give more details about the background of these. The project is due to be completed by the end of December 2010.
