York Minster charges to increase

The Minster had an annual deficit of £612,000

The cost of visiting York Minster is rising on Tuesday.

Admission fees - introduced in August 2003 to reduce an annual budget deficit of £612,000 - will go up from £4.50 to £5 for adults.

Compulsory charges have already more than halved the cathedral's deficit to £220,000, it was revealed in November.

A statement by the Dean and Chapter of York described the 50p rise as slight, thanks to "the encouraging results expected for 2004".

Concessionary charges will rise from £3 to £3.50, but children under 16 and York residents will have free entry.

Before the charges, the minster relied on visitors' donations alone.

The Dean of York, Keith Jones, now hopes funds can be spent on projects which were previously shelved.

Dean Jones said: "We obviously still have a great deal of work to do and we will continue to keep expenditure under control."