Big switch on for Peterborough Cathedral's new £300k lighting system

A whole new system, to fix the previously ‘failing’ system has been installed following funding from the Combined Authority.

Earlier this year, the Combined Authority’s Funding Committee approved the £299,432 of UK Shared Prosperity Fund investment to replace the Cathedral’s failing lighting system with a modern, energy-efficient solution.

In submitting the application, the cathedral warned that the outdated lighting was at risk of failure, threatening safety, accessibility and the ability to use the building flexibly for a growing programme of activities.

The new lights were officially switched on for the first time during the grand opening of the new Titanosaur exhibition on Monday night (April 13).

Mayor Bristow made the official switch-on, in his opening speech, he said: “When we talk about Peterborough Cathedral, we talk about the past, the fact that its 900-year-old, the unique attraction of Katharine of Aragon, how beautiful the building is and about Christian worship and how important it is to our city.

"From now on, yes, we are going to reflect on the past but we should talk about the future and how it will fit into Peterborough’s future. For Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, our time is now in terms of our location, our natural advantages and our hard-working people. This Cathedral is the embodiment of that.

"I am so pleased there is such exciting plans for the future and that’s why, when the application came in to support the Cathedral with its lights, it was an easy decision to make.”