A plastic bag under the altar has given a 700-year-old Lancashire church a lifeline.
St Wilfrid’s Church in Melling, near Lancaster, was set to shut because its congregation could not raise the £750,000 needed for urgent repairs to the building.
Rev Jane Lee said she and a lay minister were preparing for morning prayers when they found a plastic bag with a box that, “to our amazement”, contained nine gold Britannia coins.
The coins are worth nearly £30,000.
Lee said they burst into tears because the money was “so desperately needed” for the 700 year old church, which was “in a bit of a pickle” because of the scale of repair work needed, including a new roof.
She told BBC North West Tonight: “We just burst into tears when we saw it.
“We couldn’t believe it. It was like a miracle because it’s so desperately needed for the church.”
Lee said the church was in the process of closing when the hoard was found.
“We were struggling to keep our doors open.”
She said it was “the answer to their prayers” because the £30,000 can “be a seed” for grant applications and other fundraising to get the repairs done.
Lee said she believed the gold coins may have been hidden there four years ago by a mystery benefactor.
She said other churches in the area received similar mystery gifts in 2022, but St Wilfrid’s Church did not find its donation until Good Friday, on 3 April.
She said: “For me, it’s significant because we’ve got more community backing now to the church, whereas four years ago we would have probably just spent it on the day-to-day running of it.
“Well now it’s there for a seed to get all the repairs done that need to be done.”
She added: “It’s wonderful news.”
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