WINCHESTER Cathedral has received a £10.5m cash boost to help fund a £19m regeneration project.

The cathedral applied for the grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund last year and today (July 30) confirmed it had been successful.

Receiver general Annabelle Boyes said: “Last year I was able to say that I was delighted that we were in a position where we could realistically look forward to the day when we could fulfil some long held aspirations for repairs, conservation and the significant enhancement of what we offer our visitors.

“Today I am delighted to be able to say that work can commence, thanks to this significant contribution from the HLF.”

Stuart McLeod, Head of HLF South East, added: “Winchester Cathedral is one of the UK’s most important cathedrals having weathered the test of time for over nine hundred years. A five-year programme of urgent conservation work will ensure this precious site is protected for the future.”

The funding will be divided among several projects, including repairing the roof and medieval windows, improving the education centre, revamping the sound system and lighting.

Meanwhile, it will help develop three new exhibitions - relocating the Winchester Bible to the ground floor; ‘Decoding the Stones’, an architectural history of the building; and ‘The Birth of a Nation’, researching the cathedral’s six mortuary chests containing the remains of Saxon kings.

The Very Rev James Atwell, Dean of Winchester, added: “Winchester Cathedral has significance beyond the ordinary and needs to tell its story effectively in the 21st Century and offer an exceptional experience to visitors and worshippers alike.

“The cathedral has always been about community and this award will increase our ability to reach out, welcome and serve the wellbeing of a new generation.”

But the cathedral is still raising money to make up the other £9m of its fundraising appeal, through events such as the Winchester Dialogues, a series of interviews with high-profile figures including former Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd and current Culture Secretary and Basingstoke MP, Maria Miller.

Repairs are expected to start in early Autumn while work on the exhibitions will begin shortly afterwards.