St James Heyshott Preservation Trust was established in 1990, when major repairs to the church roof were needed. Our founding deed set out the charity’s objects as:

‘the maintenance, repair and upkeep of the fabric of the parish church of St James at Heyshott, the services of the said church and the furniture of the graveyard and land attaching thereto’

Since then, the Trust has been managed by villagers and other local people to support the conservation of the church and churchyard for future generations. Every five years, the building is inspected by the church architects (the ‘Quinquennial inspection’), at which point preservation issues are raised, and then assessed by the trustees.

The most recent example of a major work with which the Trust collaborated is the renewal of the church’s bellcote in 2018, see picture, where we provided almost £40,000 towards the work. The next Quinquennial is due later in 2026, and we will be interested to hear the findings of the architects. In the meantime, the Trust contributes to repairs - most recently a new roof for the vestry - and funds churchyard maintenance such as the wall repair shown on the Donate page, and twice-yearly inspection and maintenance on the building.

The Trust is not concerned with religious matters, but acts independently to provide funds for the long-term preservation of St James. All our trustees live in or near Heyshott - and all believe in the centrality of the church to the village, and the importance of its welcome to all villagers, of any faith or none.

Chair: Dinah Lamming

Secretary: Penny Booth

Treasurer: Rob Russell

Trustee: Rev Chris Boxley

Trustee: Tom Eden

Trustee: Jon Coles

Please be in touch if you would like to hear more, or to make a donation by more traditional means than the online giving page that follows.