Grants for Places of Worship
The parapet was in very bad condition and becoming dangerous to passers-by. Other repair work to the windows and stonework helped to make the building watertight and prevent further deterioration. Alongside the repair work, the local community took part in activities that have helped them to learn about the history of the church including guided tours and the creation of a guidebook.
This Grade I listed church is dedicated to the little known Anglo-Saxon Saint, Wendreda. She was the sister of Ehelreada who founded Ely Cathedral, and daughter of one of the first Anglo-Saxon Christian Kings, King Anna. Wendreda was gifted in the art of healing and used water from a holy well at Exning. After her death she was enshrined in gold and held at Ely Cathedral where her relics supposedly still had healing powers. It has been rumoured that the final resting place of St Wendreda lies under the flagstones of the church that bears her name.
The church itself is famous for its roof of angels built after 1523. With outstretched wings each angel - all 136 of them - holds a different musical instrument from a harpsichord to a fiddle. Among other carved symbols, the roof is further decorated with 2,700 fleurs-de-lis.