National Churches Trust: New Government funding for places of worship welcomed
2 min read
The National Churches Trust has welcomed the announcement of a £1.8 million pilot scheme to help places of worship.
Heritage Minister Michael Ellis MP has announced the launch of a pilot scheme to help build a sustainable future for listed places of worship.
Claire Walker, Chief Executive of the National Churches Trust, said:
“The National Churches Trust welcomes the announcement that £1.8 million of funding will be made available to places of worship in Manchester and Suffolk to help communities better care for and protect their buildings.”
“This funding is very good news indeed for church buildings of all denominations and other listed places of worship and a very positive first step towards implementing the recommendations of the Taylor Review on the sustainability of English churches and cathedrals.”
“Ensuring the long term sustainability of places of worship has to based on partnerships between Government, statutory heritage organisations, religious denominations, local communities and charities, and support organisations.”
“The creation of a £500,000 minor repairs fund by the Government to help support other funding is particularly to be welcomed. Maintenance is critical to ensuring that historic church buildings are kept in good condition and that they are run in the most efficient manner.”
“The National Churches Trust will work closely with our partners in the church heritage sector to help ensure that the two pilot programmes are successful.”
“In addition, churches in the two pilot areas will be able to make use of our new MaintenanceBooker service to care for their buildings and also our ExploreChurches website, which will make it easier for people to visit churches and discover their history and heritage.”
