AN 800-YEAR-old chapel in Leominster will benefit from National Lottery funding for essential restoration work to take place.

Forbury Chapel has received a grant of £97,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund for repairs and restoration work, alongside heritage activities and resources.

Repairs are scheduled to be completed next month, while the heritage activities will be ongoing for the next 16 months.

Cath Warren, development worker at the chapel, said: “We’re delighted that we’ve received this support because The Forbury has played a vital role in Leominster’s community for the past 800 years. It’s great to know that we are a step closer to preserving it for another century.”

The project will see the chapel's unique architectural features be digitised and more information resources will be created for tourists to Leominster, while a team of volunteer historical researchers will be on hand to lead the project.

A new website for the chapel will also be created, unearthing the chapel's history stretching back 800 years, during which it has served the community as a place of worship, a theatre, a school, court house and offices.

The Forbury History Research Group meet monthly on the first Thursday of the month and new volunteers are welcome.

A free event will also take place at the chapel on November 8 to meet the team behind the project.

To book a place, email: theforburychapel@gmail.com