St Mary the Less .....

The photos below are of St Mary The Less Church on Bury Road, Thetford. It is the oldest church in Thetford and as you can see from the photos, it is in a very bad state. Like so many other buildings around Thetford, The Mary The Less is owned by a private property developer - (if you could say developer?). The owner bought the building from the church, has done virtually nothing to it, applied and obtained planning permission to convert it into a house and attempted to sell it at a far greater price than what it was originally purchased for. Easy hey? Well no, because nobody has bought it, and several years and neglect are really now showing, particularly the gaping hole in the roof which must surely be affecting and weakening the whole building considerably. As ever, our local district council seems entirely ineffectual at forcing the landlord to do anything in regards to protecting this building, despite its Grade I listed status. The planning permission has now lapsed, and I cannot imagine that if it was obtained, there would be anymore demand for it as a house then there was previously, particularly given the economic climate. Maybe the price will continue to drop and some other well intentioned organisation, or person, could purchase it, and make the improvements it so desperately need. What a fantastic beacon for Thetford this could be with enough thought and investment. Update: St Mary the Less is a grade II - not a Grade I.