
St Mary's Priory Tower Steps & Clock appeal
Donation protected
The Friends of Chepstow Priory is a small but growing band of community volunteers aiming to increase the utilisation of the Chepstow Priory to be a versatile thriving centre for the whole community.
St Mary’s Priory has been a centrepiece for the town of Chepstow since it was built in 1071. The clock tower, a later addition in 1705, houses the only working public clock in Chepstow, and its chimes can be heard by all around. The other public clocks, on the old Herbert Lewis building and Tesco, have long since ceased to function.
Whilst the clock is still working, the clock movement is obsolete having been in place for over 60yrs ago, in the event of a failure replacements parts are no longer available. The clock has been recently been serviced by the expert clockmakers 'Smiths of Derby est 1856', who have been maintaining the clock for decades, they have now informed us that the clock movement needs to be replaced to ensure Chepstow’s last remaining public clock keeps ticking and striking the tower bell on the hour. Any unplanned failure of the clock will have no means of repair. Help us upgrade the clock to take us forward to the rest of the century.
The clock is housed in the tower, with a spiral staircase which has a number of broken steps, making access to the roof very hazardous. Although a flag was hoisted last year, it is now very tatty and is being lowered. It is impossible to send people up there on a regular basis to change or care for the flag – only specialised contractors can do it, which all costs money.
The tower steps, also an integral part of the structure of the building, is the other part of this project which again will secure the future of the building into the years ahead, and give members of the public an opportunity to visit the tower roof and look at the beautiful Chepstow views.
The third part of the project is to repair some of the decorative stonework on the tower front which is deteriorating.
The estimates for these works are listed below:
1. Refurbishment of the clock - £3000.
2. Broken tower steps - £12,000
3. Repair to the decorative stonework on the West Front - £10,000.
Whilst we will be making every effort to secure grant funding for these works, in general they are more forthcoming if part of the money has been raised through donations and fundraising projects. Chepstow Priory Friends will be able to contribute to this work, as will the Diocese (or church body). However, we need to reach out to the community for your support, as the views of the local community, expressed in people’s willingness to help, will very much assist us in attracting support from other funding bodies.
Please give generously to our appeal – check out our website www.chepstowprioryfriends.uk & facebook page: Chepstow Priory Friends for updates on our progress, and come along for a Tower Tour once the work is complete, and we can show you the clock from the inside of the tower.
Thanks for your support!
Chepstow Priory Friends
Organizer
Chepstow Priory Friends
Organizer