Plans to turn church into hostel given funding

Plans to turn a historic church in the North York Moors into a "low-cost hostel" have taken a step forward after funding was secured from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

A grant of £122,760 will go towards the project to turn the Church of St Michael in Cold Kirby into accommodation for pilgrims, walkers and visitors to the area.

The church, which has been closed since 2024, forms part of the St Aelred's Pilgrim Trail - a 41-mile (66km) route linking Helmsley and the churches of Upper Ryedale with Rievaulx Abbey.

The Rev Ian Robinson said transforming the church would be "an opportunity to serve people once again, while protecting and celebrating its heritage for future generations".

The church stands on a site that has been used for worship since the 12th Century.

The current building was erected in 1841, replacing an earlier medieval church, although its features include a 12th Century font and a 13th Century bell.

The St Aelred's Pilgrim Trail Society said the funding would enable them to develop the plans and undertake specialist work needed on how the Grade-II listed church could be conserved and adapted.

The money would help the project investigate its conservation, design, access, planning, environmental, business and operational requirements and prepare its proposals for the next stage, the society said.

The society said the proposed hostel, called St Michael's Lodge, "would add a place of affordable accommodation and welcome within that wider network, while also serving visitors who come to the North York Moors for walking, cycling, horse riding, heritage and recreation".

Its secretary, George Gyte, said the St Aelred's pilgrim trail had grown in popularity and because the church also sat on the route of the Cleveland Way National Trail, hundreds of walkers passed the building each year.

"They often ask where they can stay and the problem for us, especially on the western side of the North York Moors, is there's very little bed and breakfast accommodation in the area," he said.

"There's Airbnb places, but often people just want somewhere they can walk and drop their rucksack then get up and do the next stage."

Gyte said the project was an opportunity to give a "new sense of purpose for heritage hospitality that we envision the trail becoming".

He added: "We're looking after a building's past and also looking to the future in terms of a different kind of purpose."

Helen Featherstone, north of England National Lottery Heritage Fund director, said the church was "an important part of the North York Moors' heritage", and the funding would help "safeguard its heritage for future generations".

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