Painting raffle raises £13k for new church heating

An eco-conscious church has raised thousands of pounds to put towards a new heating system by raffling a painting from a renowned artist.

St Mary's Church in Woodbridge, Suffolk, wants to install a low-carbon heating pump at a cost of £200,000 after its old gas boiler "gave up the ghost" last year.

To help raise £10,000 of that total, the Grade I listed church has been selling raffle tickets to win a painting by Suffolk-born Maggi Hambling.

But, according to Nick Cottam, chair of the Friends of St Mary's Church, the ballot has already raised more than £13,000 ahead of the winner being announced in March.

"It's amazing and it's captured people's imaginations, so it's really worked well," he said.

This winter the church has had to rely on temporary electric heaters which are "not adequate" and expensive to run.

Cottam says the low-carbon heating pump the church hopes to install will "help preserve the fabric of the building" and change the way it can be used.

The system could be up-and-running by the autumn and will also contribute to helping the Church of England achieve its net zero target by 2030.

"If the boiler had carried on working we probably would have carried on using it, but we would have looked at this some time down the line," he said.

"I think we will be the only church in the area that's going for quite such innovative a solution."

Before launching the raffle of the painting, £100,000 had already been set aside by the church and a further £30,000 had been raised.

Hambling, who was born in Sudbury, is known for her sea paintings as well as her sculptures, including Scallop, which celebrates Benjamin Britten at Aldeburgh beach.

Her works fetch tens of thousands at auction, with her Wall of Water piece once selling for £65,000.

She donated her Fireworks Above the Sea artwork to the church after hearing of its cause through art-lover Father Nigel Prior, with whom she has links.

"It's been really good, really helpful, and a tremendous boost to the project because not only does it directly raise money, it makes people think about the appeal," added Cottam.

"It's a wonderful way to both capture people's imaginations because people are inspired by good art and to raise money."

Raffle tickets are being sold for £10 and the winner will be announced on 5 March.

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