Putting a price on the Minster

CATHEDRALS cost a fortune to run. They incur the usual expenses of any organisation: staff wages, administration costs, heating and lighting charges. But on top of this is the maintenance bill. Preserving these ancient buildings is a huge financial commitment.

A quick glance at the figures from great churches around the country is eye-opening. St Paul's Cathedral costs £7.5 million a year to run; Canterbury Cathedral £4 million; Lincoln Cathedral £2.25 million; and Bath Abbey half a million pounds.

Of this quartet, the first three charge people to enter. Bath Abbey does not.

That is the pattern across England. There is no umbrella body that decides on admission fees; it is left to the governing body of each church to decide. In the case of cathedrals, that is the Dean and Chapter; for a parish church like Bath Abbey, it is the parochial parish council.

Therefore location determines whether you will be forced to pay to look round the abbey, cathedral or minster.

The Very Reverend Edward Shotter, secretary of the Association of English Cathedrals, believes cathedrals which charge admission are in the minority. He admits that the introduction of charging causes a "public brouhaha" but at the same time "they generate a very considerable income".

Neither is this a new phenomenon. Dean Shotter's own cathedral, Rochester in Kent, possesses a document dating from the First World War which states that the "admission charge is waived".

"Certainly in the 19th century, cathedrals charged for admission," he said. "Following museums becoming free at the turn of the century, cathedrals followed suit.

"Cathedrals today would be horrified to be looked at in any sense as museums, and they are now more visited than at any time in their history."

This creates its own problems. Dean Shotter said that Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral in London were overrun by visitors, causing massive wear and tear. The decision to charge admission was done to reduce their number as well as to raise funds. It worked on both levels.

"The purpose of the exercise was to control visitors and visitors were controlled. You can compare this with Durham Cathedral, which doesn't charge. It has seen no decline in numbers, so obviously it is a disincentive if you start charging."

Some people object to any sort of commercial activity in church, let alone admission fees.

Every cathedral now boasts a shop, raising crucial revenue. They meet a need, Dean Shotter says, selling mementoes, and religious publications and artefacts.

"But some people object to the shops because of Christ overturning the lenders' tables in the temple. In fact that's confusing two things. Any cleric of a cathedral can easily disabuse people of that."

People are bound to raise this same point when it comes to charging admission to a cathedral. What would he say to them? "It's about exploitation," he replies. "I don't think there's any level of exploitation in charges which are quite modest in comparison to other public buildings. There's no question of exploitation."

Lincoln Cathedral introduced admission charges in April 2000, when it became clear that other sources of income were not covering costs.

Chief executive of Lincoln Cathedral Roy Bentham said: "They thought they would give it a try to see if it would bring in any more money.

"Lincoln was a 'semi-charging' cathedral at that time. We didn't charge, but we had people asking visitors as they left the cathedral for a donation. It was a halfway house.

"Then the Chapter felt it would be more straightforward and honest to have an appropriate charge, so everyone knew when they went in that we were expecting people to pay towards the massive upkeep of the cathedral."

The decision was criticised. "There were stories in the media and letters to myself and the Dean. But we haven't had one for six to nine months."

That experience is mirrored in the visitor numbers. "In the first year there was a drop in numbers, but in the second year we have recovered from that drop. The resistance was very short-lived."

After that first year, a sign was placed outside the entrance stating the admission charges alongside a stark message: it costs £50,000 every week to keep Lincoln Cathedral open.

"That made a very big difference to people's attitudes," Mr Bentham said. "People didn't really have a full understanding of the enormous costs of running one of the great medieval cathedrals.

"Staff on the desk tell me that since we very clearly stated it costs £50,000 a week to keep open, they have had very little resistance to having to pay."

He estimates that 170,000 people come through the doors each year, of which 100,000 are paying visitors.

One of the guiding principles of the system is that no one is excluded from the Lincoln Cathedral purely on the grounds that he or she cannot pay. The cathedral still offers rest and refreshment for the dispossessed and socially disadvantaged for no charge.

Meanwhile, Lincoln residents and regular visitors are encouraged to pay a £12 annual pass for unlimited access.

Bath, like York, is a small tourist city boasting a major church at its heart. Bath Abbey stands next door to the historic Pump Rooms, and visitors there are also greeted with a sign outside the main door. It reads: "Welcome to Bath Abbey. Please come in. We invite you to make a £2 gift. There's no charge but a donation is appreciated."

Alan Morley, administrator of the abbey, says: "We discussed this long and hard to come up with these words, and feel they get the message across."

The parochial parish council did consider imposing charges, but decided against.

"They didn't want to charge people to come into the Abbey. They want to give the impression that, yes, it costs a lot of money to run, but they would rather people felt they could make a donation to the upkeep of the Abbey."

Even this arrangement hasn't pleased everyone.

"I have had two letters that said the Abbey was charging people to go in. I have written back to say we don't. It's a very emotive issue."

Bath Abbey costs more than £1,000 a day to run. And as it is a parish church not a cathedral, the Abbey must pay a further amount to the diocese. In addition, its ongoing conservation programme has cost £4 million so far.

It makes £300,000 a year from donations, which works out at roughly £1 a person - half the amount asked for. So how does the request for donations work in practice?

"We have a steward on duty at the door most of the time," Mr Morley said. "If there's a steward there, people are prepared to pay, and the money increases.

"If he's not there, it depends on who's coming in. If the first person in a group pays some money, the others follow. If not, they don't.

"Probably about half of the people pay money, and the amount they pay varies as well. Some people will put in more than £2, some less."

York Minster is at the heart of the Northern Province of the Church of England. So the Dean and Chapter might find it instructive to consider the experience of Canterbury Cathedral, headquarters of the Southern Province, and mother church of the Anglican world.

Canterbury Cathedral is found within a World Heritage Site, fully enclosed by walls.

Admission charges were introduced in 1995. People pay one fee at the gates which allows them access to the Cathedral and all the buildings within the precincts.

The charges only apply at certain times of day and do not affect the congregation coming to worship. They were reduced after the outbreak of foot and mouth disease.

The Dean of Canterbury, the Very Reverend Robert Willis, said: "Mostly people who come here, and many are from the continent or America, are coming to see and celebrate the history of the place. They almost expect to pay."

However, residents of Canterbury, members of the diocese and others with links to the cathedral do not have to pay a penny. They can apply for a credit-sized plastic card that gives them free admission.

So far, 60,000 have been issued. This scheme helped quell any protests about the admission charges.

It was never their intention to prevent people seeking spiritual comfort gaining entry, said Dean Willis.

"If someone says, 'I am simply coming to say my prayers', they're waved through."

Canterbury Cathedral costs £4 million a year to run. Asking for voluntary donations simply didn't raise that sort of cash. "However much you put boxes out, it wasn't enough."

Would the cathedral have struggled to make ends meet with charging? "Without a doubt," the Dean says, emphatically.

"We would certainly have had to call upon the diocese. Now we can stand up and say to people, this is a self-sufficient cathedral."

How much to get in?

All cathedrals in the Northern Province are free

York Minster

Admission free

Other charges: £3 to visit the undercroft, £3 to go up the tower, £1 to visit the Chapter House

Canterbury Cathedral, Kent

Adults: £3.50

Concessions and children: £2.50

Children under school age free

Residents can get in free by writing in for a card

Other charges: general tours - £1.50-£3.50; film about Cathedral's history - 50p-£1.50; photography permits £2

St Paul's Cathedral, London

Adults: £5.50

Concessions: £4.50

Children: £2.50

Other charges: Supertour £1-£2.50; cassette tour £3

Westminster Abbey, London

Adults: £6

Concessions and children: £3

Under 11s free

Other charges: admission to Chapter House, Pyx Chamber and museum £2.50; verger-led tours £3; audio-guides £2

Lincoln Cathedral

Adults: £3.50

Concessions and children: £3

Annual visitor pass: £12

Bath Abbey

Admission free

Suggested donation: £2

Gloucester Cathedral

Admission free

Suggested donation: £1-£2.50

Salisbury Cathedral

Admission free

Suggested donation: £2-£3.50

Norwich Cathedral

Admission free

Donations encouraged

Peterborough Cathedral

Admission free

Donations encouraged

Updated: 10:46 Thursday, January 24, 2002