Selby Abbey: £1m in funding to share story of its origins with a saint and three swans

A huge chunk of this money is to go towards urgent repairs – and preserving its St Germain stained-glass window that charts the tale of these ancient origins.

Across Yorkshire, around £1.8m has been awarded from the National Lottery to places of worship in the past six months, with funds for the abbey’s scheme and seven other projects.

In Selby, the vicar, the Rev Canon John Weetman, said the funding will help preserve the abbey for future generations to enjoy: "We will be able to involve many more people from the local community and beyond in discovering how the abbey and the town came to be here, and how they developed during those early years of their history in medieval times.

"The project will also enable us to develop our team of volunteers who are key to the welcome and the activities that we offer to residents and visitors alike.”

Selby Abbey was founded in 1069 as a Benedictine monastery.

Legend has it a French monk, Benedict of Auxerre, was inspired by a vision he had of St Germain to build a new monastery at 'Selebiae', on a site to be marked by three swans. It was at the bend of the River Ouse that three swans alighted the river.

Now the abbey's stained-glass St Germain window, dating back to 1906, charts the life of Benedict’s mission.

As part of The Origin Stories project the window will undergo restoration and interpretation to share this story more widely.

A programme of activities and events is planned, from craft workshops to monastic chants, graffiti workshops and gardening.

Hull Minster is to use the funds to mark the 600th anniversary of a medieval church on this site, with an events programme planned through this year and next.

In Grimsby, the Sir Moses Montefiore Memorial Synagogue explores ways it can share the district's story of Jewish heritage while carrying out emergency repairs.

Helmsley's All Saints Parochial Church is to centre its efforts on conservation of the Grade ll-listed building and Edwardian wall paintings.

At Bulmer, near Malton, the 14th century tower at St Martin's Church is to see conservation, while at Osbaldwick the community is to share the oral history of St Thomas’ Church.

At Bradford Cathedral, a "breathtaking" tapestry aims to weave together the rich stories of the district's wool trade.

Now, All Saints church in Hessle has also been awarded £229,768 for a project known as A Towering Presence, and will undergo “critical” repairs. Events are to give it new life through the arts.

The Rev Gemma Turner said: "Not only does this save our historic 15th century tower, but it helps us to engage the whole community of Hessle in exploring not just the heritage of the church, but the town itself.”