GRANTS to restore the region's crumbling Christian heritage were announced yesterday at some of our best-loved centres of worship.

English Heritage yesterday unveiled much-needed grants to help maintain the fabric of cathedrals in Ripon, Durham and Newcastle, as part of a £1m programme of repairs around the country.

The region's largest grant - £100,000 - will go to repairing the leaky roof at Ripon Cathedral and protect its priceless interior.

The grant ensures that, at last, the 13-year restoration of the roof can be completed. The final phases of the project will focus on the 100ft central tower, which dates back to the 12th Century, and the timber bellcote, which once housed the bell used to call the faithful to prayer.

John Hinchcliffe, of English Heritage in North Yorkshire, said: "Ripon Cathedral is one of the nation's truly great buildings with a history stretching back 1,400 years.

"This work will go some way towards ensuring that future generations can share its beauty and heritage."

Work on the £210,000 project, which is expected to take five months, will start in June.

At Durham Cathedral, English Heritage has donated £50,000 for works on the crumbling north face of the Chapel of the Nine Altars, where centuries of erosion are beginning to take their toll on the Norman stonework and pointing, particularly on the north-west turret. The grant will allow for the completion of a project started in 1999.

Meanwhile, St Mary's Church, the Roman Catholic cathedral in Newcastle, has been awarded £16,000 towards the cost of repairing the Victorian stained glass windows at the east end of the building.

The city's Church of England cathedral, St Nicholas', will receive a grant of £17,000 towards the third phase of roof repairs.