Just heard a short (none musical) programme on R4 about Durham Cathedral. No charge is made for visiting the cathedral so WELL DONE DURHAM and shame on the rest of them! Visiting York a few years ago I was appalled by the cash registers and the supermarket beep-beeps they made. It is understood that these medieval buildings are pretty pricey to maintain, but IMO more imaginative ways should be found to finance them than charging for admission.
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ardcarpOriginally posted by ardcarp View Post
I agree with you but with the recent budget abolishing the VAT exemption on listed building repairs and organ refurbishment the likelihood is that more cathedrals will have to charge for entry especially if they rely on tourist income which may also have been hit by the recession.
St Albans doesn't rely on tourists and has no lucrative endowments but entry is still free and will remain so under the current Dean and Chapter. Lucky they got the recent million pound rebuild of the Harrison organ out of the way when they did and all the 15 million planned works to extend the present facilities will be mostly new build but this will largely depend on a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund ( although they are determined to finance the work from other sources if turned down for the funding. )
Asking congregations to raise the sums of money involved for general maintenance of these buildings, with English Heritage grants also being cut, is extremely difficult for the cathedral authorities even in an affluent area such as St Albans with its huge congregation so what it must be like in other not so well off areas I cannot imagine.
I do sympathise with those Deans and Chapters who feel that they have no alternative but to charge for entry even if, as you say, it looks awful to visitors. Even the ordinary bookstalls etc inside can be off - putting. I remember reading one entry in the visitors' book at St Albans whch said " This place looks more like a shop."
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Not being a member of any church but feeling that these buildings are part of my culture I have no problem at all with paying to visit them. I do think that abolishing the 0% VAT rating on listed buildings is a big mistake indeed and will affect many things including the cost of things like organ restoration not just in cathedrals and churches.
Maybe I would feel different if I was a member of the church ? but when i've visited religious buildings in other countries I have no objection at all to make a contribution or even be charged admission.Comment
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What happens in a cathedral where they charge admission for sightseers (sp?) if you go to a service (surely they don't charge for that?) and then stay on to have a look round? Are you collared by some sort of ticket inspector and made to pay?Comment
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I've often wondered about this Mary!!
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Must admit I misread this at first as 'Derham still free'. Oh good, I thought, they're about to bring her in for questioning concerning serious crimes against the English language …Comment
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Must admit I misread this at first as 'Derham still free'. Oh good, I thought, they're about to bring her in for questioning concerning serious crimes against the English language …
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What happened at Wabbey last time I went to CE (admittedly a while ago) is that one waited outside, was shepherded in and after CE was made aware that it was time to go again! Rather put me off future visits. Admission fees are an outrage whether you are a practising Christian or not. Ds and Cs just do not try hard enough. They need to make the 'Friends of the Cathedral' groups much more active in fund-raising, and they need to get cyber-savvy and do some online fund-raising too.What happens in a cathedral where they charge admission for sightseers (sp?) if you go to a service (surely they don't charge for that?) and then stay on to have a look round?
Going back to York Minster a few years ago (the matter was raised on the You and Yours programme) I watched families approach the steps, see the fees (about £15 if you were a couple with children) and turn away again. Shocking. And don't get me started on hospital parking. Visiting a dying relative? Just stick £5 in the meter and rush out again every couple of hours to make sure you haven't been clamped. My mates in France just cannot believe I am telling the truth when they hear this.
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reading, on this page from the Durham Cathedral website, that it costs £60,000 a week to maintain the cathedral, I wonder if it is an astute ploy to ask for donations rather than charge a fee, because in that way they may end up receiving more from particularly generous people.
the York website says that entrance fees only pay for the day-to-day running of the Minster, not for any other projectsComment
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Why ?Originally posted by ardcarp View Post
It's not my religion , it's a beautiful building that I want to visit, it's not owned by the state (in fact the church and the state should be completely separated IMV) like our national museums and galleries , why shouldn't a private organisation charge me to go and look ? If I was a card carrying member of the sect that is the CofE then there must be a way of it's members getting in to do their thang for free ?
To compare it with car parking at hospitals is ridiculous, this should never have been allowed to happen but the two things are not comparable at all.Comment
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I'm afraid card carrying Anglicans do not 'get in free', except for services. But my point (hospitals as well) is that we live in rip-off Britain. Oh, but we manage to spend billions of OUR money on fighting wars in silly places. Would you rather we did that or have free hospital parking? Maybe we won't agree on this one, McGG.Comment
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Of Course hospitals should be free (I've spent enough money and pain on them in the last couple of months to last a lifetime !) and we should stop thinking that we can join in with Team America World Police ............Originally posted by ardcarp View Post
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The church really is it's own thing and shouldn't have anything to do with the state so as a non-christian its really not my gig. Unlike some of the things the church does this one is harmless, maybe they should have a discount for heterosexuals ?Comment
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And no doubt about where she has secreted all tgose word-endings!Originally posted by JFLL View PostComment
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OK Everyone who visits might be asked not only for a contribution, but also for their email address (voluntary, of course). Then there could be emails sent out giving cathedral news, including the work and mission of the place, and subtly asking if the recipient would be a regular financial supporter of the cathedral. Many of these would fall on stony ground, but I dare say a percentage would strike home, especially if their (free) visit had been a good experience. A tiny example of the psychology of giving might be exemplified by the rather fine organ of which I was once titulaire. A sheet giving its specification was first of all sold. There weren't many takers. Latterly, it was decided to give these out free, but an organ pipe converted to a money box was placed nearby for contributions to an ongoing organ fund. The 'take' was infinitely higherr.
It is interesting that the Anglican Church is the established church, i.e. connected with the state and the monarchy, and yet receives no financial support from it. These great medieval buildings are part of our national heritage and no doubt a great boost to the tourist industry. It seems perfect sense to me that the fabric should be safeguarded by the taxpayer...a much more worthy cause (like free hospital parking) than fighting wars that have little relevance to us.Comment
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