‘Tap and Donate’ Scheme Launched to Help Preserve York’s Historic City Walls
City of York Council invites visitors to support the conservation of the 2,000-year-old walls
A new ‘Tap and Donate’ scheme has been launched in York to help fund the ongoing conservation of the city’s world-famous medieval walls.
The pilot scheme, launched by City of York Council, is initially available at Bootham Bar, allowing visitors to make contactless donations of £3, £5, or £10 using their debit or credit cards. Online donations are also available.
The walls, which span nearly 2,000 years of history, are among York’s most significant heritage assets, drawing millions of visitors each year. The Council, which acts as custodian to most of the city’s listed buildings, hopes this new initiative will engage the public in supporting their long-term care.
“Our specialist Ancient Monuments team carry out important conservation work on the walls, from day-to-day maintenance and monitoring to pointing and stone replacement,” said Cllr Pete Kilbane, Deputy Leader of City of York Council.
“York is one of the only councils in the country that has its own in-house stonemason team looking after the heritage assets that make our city so special.”
Currently, it costs between £500,000 and £600,000 per year to maintain the city walls — a cost borne by local taxpayers. But with around 2.5 million visitors enjoying the walls annually, the Council says even a small donation from a fraction of these visitors could make a significant difference.
“If just 5% of visitors donated £5, it would raise £625,000,” added Cllr Kilbane. “That would more than cover the cost of their upkeep and help ensure they continue to be well maintained for millennia to come.”
The ‘Tap and Donate’ point at Bootham Bar is the first of its kind, with the potential to expand the scheme across other locations on the city walls depending on its success.