Hudswell Hostel

St Michael and All Angels Church is situated on the edge of the village of Hudswell near Richmond, North Yorkshire. It was built in 1885 and is located on the site of the former Hudswell Church dating from 1250.

In 2017, the church closed when, due to a dwindling congregation, it sadly became unsustainable to run as a parish church. Hudswell Community Charity approached the Diocese of Leeds about ownership and the Diocese agreed to work with them to find a feasible solution. Several options were considered, including reuse for social housing, workshops and an arts performance space, but eventually the charity settled on the proposal to create a hostel providing affordable, short-term accommodation for walking groups and families.

The church was deconsecrated and a planning application was submitted to Yorkshire Dales National Park. The plans involve reconfiguring the church by adding a mezzanine floor to the nave, a car park including two electric vehicle charging points, a timber bike store, and freestanding solar panels to provide power, along with an air source heat pump. Once complete, the converted church will encourage tourism to the area and hopefully increase use of the village shop and pub, which are owned by the community. 

In early 2021, Hudswell Hostel approached the AHF regarding grants for rural projects, and in Summer 2021, they were awarded a Project Development Grant to employ a quantity surveyor to undertake detailed cost estimates of their designed plans. The charity kept in contact with the AHF and were awarded a further grant in March 2022 to employ a fire engineer to inspect and verify their proposed fire suppressing misting system. In June 2022, the charity was granted planning permission to convert St Michael's Church into a hostel. While this is great news, the charity now face the even greater challenge of raising circa £800,000 for converting the church.

About Hudswell Hostel @ St Michaels Ltd

Hudswell Hostel @ St Michaels Ltd was set up by Hudswell Community Charity, an established charity first formed in 1672 that exists to provide services that benefit the community of Hudswell. It has operated in Hudswell for centuries and was originally founded to distribute parish relief funds. Hudswell Hostel @ St Michaels Ltd was set up to take on the task of transforming the parish church into a hostel.

AHF Funding

Project Development Grant - £1,020 (2021)

Project Development Grant - £1,770 (2022)

These grants were made possible with funding from Historic England.

June 2022