A historic Bristol church which stands as a memorial to those killed during the Bristol Blitz is at risk of being lost forever.
The Church of St Peter in Castle Park is a Grade II listed building and thought to be on the site of Bristol’s earliest church.
It has officially been listed on Historic England’s annual at-risk register which provides a snapshot of the health of England’s most valued historic places, and those most at risk of being lost.
The site has been added to the list as “high level stonework is deteriorating and large areas of internal paving need attention”.
It joins some 20 sites already on the register across the city , including Brunel’s swing bridge at the Cumberland Basin and Ashton Court Mansion.
St Peters is a large 15th century church which was damaged and reduced to a roofless shell in the first bombing raid on Bristol in November 1940.
Its ruins are maintained by Bristol City Council as a memorial to the civilian dead of World War II in Castle Park, an open space created following the area’s destruction in the Bristol Blitz.
Historic England has said that some emergency works are taking place to start securing its most vulnerable areas and there is an aspiration to increase public access to, and understanding of, the building’s story, whilst respecting its religious and spiritual significance.
Rebecca Barrett, regional director at Historic England South West, said: “The message is clear – investing in and celebrating our heritage pays.
“It helps to transform the places where we live, work and visit, creating successful and distinctive places for us and for future generations to enjoy.
“But there’s more work to do. There are buildings still on the Heritage at Risk Register that are capable of being brought back into meaningful use and generating an income, contributing to the local community and economy.”
One example is the Trinity Centre which has now been taken off the Heritage At Risk Register.
Trinity's current managers Trinity Community Arts, along with the support of Historic England, the National Lottery Heritage Fund and other funders have invested over £2m conserving, repairing and restoring the building.
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