THE parish church of St Mary Magdalene’s, Newark-on-Trent, in Nottinghamshire, is facing a shortfall of £600,000 on its £4-million “Reawakening” project, in consequence of the brand new cap on the Listed Places of Worship (LPWG) Scheme.
Under the LPWG Scheme, churches have been capable of reclaim funding corresponding to the quantity of VAT charged on repairs. The Government announced in January that the scheme, which had been on account of expire at the tip of March, can be prolonged by one 12 months — but that, after 31 March, individual places of worship can be eligible to reclaim a maximum of £25,000 (News, 24 January). This has left St Mary’s — a constructing the dimensions of a small cathedral, and on Historic England’s “At Risk” register — with the £600,000 shortfall.
Work began last November to repair its leaking roof and crumbling external stonework, and to reorder the constructing to boost its function as a community hub. Designated a “resourcing church” by the diocese of Southwell & Nottingham, its fundamental funder is the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF), with funding, too, from Historic England, the C of E’s Strategic Development Fund, the National Churches Trust, and the Wolfson Foundation.
The church was tackling the situation on several fronts, the Rector, the Revd Christopher Lion, said on Monday. “Firstly, we’re lobbying the Government to try to see if it would reverse its decision, because we feel that this can be a really unreasonable move. For projects which might be already in progress like ours, the word my churchwarden used was ‘cruel’. It’s pulling the rug from under your feet if you’ve already signed contracts.”
ST MARY MAGDALENE, NEWARKSt Mary Magdalene’s, Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
Of the Government’s contention that 94 per cent of restoration work can be unaffected, he commented: “The overwhelming majority of church constructing projects are minor repairs, or something like putting a latest toilet in. We’re talking about a serious project that is important to the probable way forward for our church, which is a Grade I listed constructing that’s been at the center of our town for generations. It’s essential that we safeguard its future.”
Before work began, the church had done one round already of what was termed “value engineering”: cutting a sizeable portion of the initial plans after taking a look at what it could afford in the sunshine of rising costs of labour and materials. It can be going back to its funders, including the NLHF. The diocese had agreed to bring forward cash-flow arrangements that it had put in place, Mr Lion said, and the church had brought forward as much purchasing of materials as possible to maintain spending throughout the financial 12 months.
“In the grand scheme of presidency spending, the quantity it will actually cost to exempt projects already under contract is negligible. Yet the impact on the communities goes to be huge if these constructing projects don’t complete, or if the worst got here to the worst and we do must stop the work and find the cash elsewhere,” Mr Lion said.
The church is closed until November this 12 months, with all services and community activities happening elsewhere until the work is accomplished. He is aware of two other churches — Holy Trinity, Clapham, and St Michael le Belfrey, York — that are in the identical position. The three are attempting to co-ordinate their lobbying efforts. “I remain optimistic that the work will find a way to proceed,” he said.
“It doesn’t mean that, within the short term, there aren’t some very real problems that we’ve to seek out practical solutions to, but I believe, ultimately, for me, it comes all the way down to trust in God.”
