Southwell Minster

Brief

Southwell Minster is a cathedral church in Nottinghamshire, celebrated for its Norman architecture and the medieval stone carvings of its Chapter House, known as the ‘Leaves of Southwell’, which have been voted the nation’s favourite cathedral treasure. Taskscape was engaged on two fronts. For the consultancy strand, the Minster’s Chapter wanted to identify and address issues that were reducing operational impact and viability, to consolidate information and enhance understanding for the incoming Dean. For the content strand, Taskscape supported the Minster’s successful £3 million Heritage Lottery Fund campaign to conserve and reimagine the Chapter House, providing a full-stack website and videos for the funding bid and subsequent project.

Activity

• Conducted a cultural audit with over 50 interviews across the Minster organisation and community, from senior leadership to volunteers
• Facilitated workshops with Minster staff, producing joint statements on operational values and purposes, identifying strengths and issues, and organising knowledge exchange visits to other UK cathedrals, such as Durham
• Provided interim management guidance and executive coaching to senior staff during the interregnum period
• Built and maintained a website for the ‘Leaves of Southwell’ Heritage Lottery Fund funding campaign and subsequent project
• Produced on-location video content to support the funding campaign and project

Outcomes

• Consultancy identified and addressed operational tensions between the Minster’s religious mission, emerging commercial opportunities and administrative capacity
• Informed restructuring of reporting, role clarity and cross-cutting working groups to improve operational sustainability
• The Heritage Lottery Fund bid was successful, securing £2.2 million within a £3 million programme
• The ‘Leaves of Southwell’ project was completed, delivering conservation, atmospheric lighting, step-free access and new interpretation for the Chapter House