Green shoots spring from North Norfolk chapel

 

The St. Seraphims Trust, which owns and runs the chapel and its surroundings, has secured a £10,000 lottery grant to enable it to renovate and develop the adjacent garden as a community resource, thus opening up the site to welcome visitors, pilgrims and especially local residents who, it is hoped, will get involved in creating place of beauty and tranquility for everyone in the Walsingham area.

 

“We want the garden to be a resource used by volunteers and others looking to learn and apply horticultural skills” said project consultant Nigel Norman, “a garden for Walsingham in large part created by the community of Walsingham. We hope it will become a place for learning, relaxation and enjoyment.”

 

However, the Trust’s celebrations are somewhat tempered by the recent loss of Leon Liddament, who co-founded St. Seraphims in 1966 and helped establish it as a renowned centre for religious art and icon painting. It is now hoped that the garden will also act as a fitting tribute to the well-respected artist, friend and trustee and, alongside the ongoing renovations to the chapel buildings and planned exhibition of religious art, enable his vision for St. Seraphims to evolve and serve a wider audience.

 

Volunteer help has already been provided courtesy of The Benjamin Foundation, whose teams have already made significant headway with the garden in preparation for its redesign. But St. Seraphims is keen to invite anyone with ‘green fingers’ and some time to spare to get involved. “We are looking for skills and simple enthusiasm in equal measure”, insists Nigel, “so everyone interested will be welcome no matter what the scale or type of contribution!”