Lune Valley church attended by Bronte sisters launches £500k restoration appeal
A church in the Lune Valley known for its connections to the Brontë sisters, has launched a £500,000 campaign to save its historic windows and stonework.
St John the Baptist Church in Tunstall has launched the appeal which will fund specialist conservation of the stained glass, repairs to the surrounding stonework and frames, and work on the church’s distinctive parapets.
A recent survey identified several windows as requiring urgent attention. These include glass depicting Joan of Arc, St George and St Michael, as well as windows featuring St John the Baptist and St George and the Dragon.
Among the church’s treasures are Flemish panels believed to date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Brought to Tunstall by the North family and installed in 1810, they depict the Virgin and Child, Christ and St Peter, and St Anthony with a kneeling canon.
The survey also identifies these panels as requiring conservation.
Nick Gillibrand, church warden at St John the Baptist, said: “The windows and the distinctive parapets are a wonderful part of Tunstall’s history, but over the centuries, they have endured the worst of
the North Lancashire weather, and they are now in need of some much-needed repair to restore them to their former glory.
"Caring for them is a significant undertaking for a small community and every contribution will help us preserve this church for the people who come after us.”
The Grade I listed church was attended by the Brontë sisters while they were pupils at the school in nearby Cowan Bridge.
St John’s later appeared as Brocklebridge Church in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre.
The Flemish glass was already in place when the sisters worshipped at the church, making its conservation part of preserving the church they would have known.
The church’s more recent history has a mystery of its own. While tidying up after a wedding, churchwarden Sue Hunter discovered a bag of coins behind a cross on the altar.
The wedding couple knew nothing about the coins, which were kept safe in case their owner came forward.
Almost four years later, reports of similar gifts to other Lancashire churches suggested the coins had been left as an anonymous donation.
Tunstall’s gift comprised one gold Britannia and seven silver coins, reported in July 2026 to be worth around £3,500.
Currently £210,000 has been raised towards the project through Trust funds, a £140,000 legacy and generous donations from local residents.
This total includes £18,000 already spent on professional fees.
Donations can be made at https://www.tunstallchurch.com/ or via the church warden Nick Gillibrand or by visiting the church where a window can be sponsored and QR code scanned.