THE way forward for church buildings is the one biggest heritage challenge facing the UK, and a national plan is urgently needed, the National Churches Trust (NCT) says.
The support charity launched its latest campaign, Every Church Counts, at a reception within the House of Lords, on Wednesday. The latest figures show that 3500 churches closed previously ten years, and greater than 900 buildings are actually on Historic England’s At Risk register; 20,000 of the 38,500 remaining church buildings have statutory listed status. Fifty-three buildings were added to the list in 2023.
Climate change is one contributor: existing roofs, gutters, and downpipes cannot deal with the more frequent and heavier rainfall. But it is just not only nationally significant heritage that’s in danger, the charity warns; neither is it only about access to Christian worship and services resembling weddings and funerals.
Places of worship are hubs of community support, it says. Many host foodbanks and warm-spaces initiatives that counter social isolation and loneliness, they usually are also a spotlight of local cultural life. The social and economic value of church buildings is estimated to be no less than £55 billion a yr: roughly twice what’s spent on adult social care by local authorities.
The challenge is nationwide: in Wales, about one quarter of the historic churches and chapels have closed previously decade, and an identical number are actually in danger. Scotland’s At Risk register includes 182 historic religious buildings. The charity notes that the Church of Scotland is planning the closure of as many as 30 to 40 per cent of its churches.
Volunteers, “including hard-pressed clergy”, are primarily chargeable for the upkeep and repair of church buildings, but few have any training in constructing management, the NCT says. It is asking for the establishment of a network of skilled church-building support officers over the entire country, to supply expert help.
It can be calling for the increased use of churches with spare capability to accommodate community services. The Government, the charity says, “should ask local authorities and public bodies to utilize churches and church halls to host public and community services”.
Because the backlog of repairs for C of E churches alone is no less than £1 billion, there have to be more funding to save lots of this priceless heritage, the campaign says.
It acknowledges “the considerable financial support already provided by heritage bodies and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport [DCMS]”. But it estimates that it would need no less than £50 million of additional annual public funding for repairs, with proportionate funding provided for devolved administrations. Private philanthropy also has an element to play, the campaign suggests. It proposes a national government-supported matched-funding scheme.
It describes church tourism as “an unrivalled national asset”, and calls on the DCMS, together with national and regional tourism bodies, to commission a national study of the way to spice up it. Churches must also be helped to open often throughout the week, “to enable them to higher connect with local people and attract visitors”.
The campaign concludes with a call to “speak up for churches. What is required greater than ever is a national plan for the long run of church buildings.” It calls for more advocacy from heritage bodies, Christian denominations, and “the numerous other individuals who use, love and value church buildings to make sure churches are seen as an asset and never a burden”.
The chief executive of the NCT, Claire Walker, described Every Church Counts as offering “a blueprint of how churches could be saved for the long run. In the approaching months we’ll work with our partners to see how the ideas could be implemented, in order that the UK’s wonderful inheritance of church buildings can proceed to profit local communities and the nation as a complete.”
Sir Philip Rutnam, who chairs the NCT, said: “One of the recommendations we make is for more funding for church buildings. Repairing the roof of a historic church can cost well over half one million kilos. Although congregations raise an incredible deal of cash locally, more financial support is urgently needed.
“More support is particularly needed for churches in additional deprived areas, resembling inner cities and coastal towns. These churches often do an incredible amount to support local people, but struggle to lift money to repair buildings, with many facing closure.”
Historic England acknowledges its work: “The listed places of worship in England provide spaces for worship in addition to social and community events, allowing people to collect for a big selection of practical and spiritual reasons. Most provide a haven for people needing a quiet, protected and peaceful place to take a break from every day worries, isolation and anxiety, no matter their very own beliefs.
“They proceed to accommodate celebration and grief, shared and personal experiences, art, music and sculpture, toddler groups, political hustings, wellbeing groups and addiction-support sessions. These are significant spaces wherein human experience has been, and continues to be, each welcome and supported.”
