New St Paul's cloister garden traces outline of medieval cathedral

The latest phase of the £40million restoration of St Paul's Cathedral opens to the public tomorrow.

A cloister garden has been created in the south churchyard, which had been overgrown, and a new south entrance to the cathedral will provide wheelchair access to the nave and crypt.

The garden design traces the proportions of the medieval chapterhouse, part of the previous cathedral that burned down in the Great Fire of London in 1666.

The £3.8million restoration of the churchyard is the latest stage in a complete renewal of the 300-year-old building. Earlier phases have seen the interior, west end and south side cleaned. The north and east facades are next on the schedule, although £1.8million still needs to be raised to complete the work.

A St Paul's spokeswoman said: "The design of the south churchyard was inspired by an archaeological dig which discovered the remains of the medieval cathedral.

"The chapterhouse is where the clergy would have worked and Sir Christopher Wren used it as his office while he was building the new St Paul's. Today it lies four feet beneath the ground but we have used Portland stone and metal to show its outline. "