PRESS RELEASE FROM THE NATIONAL CHURCH TRUST
STRICT EMBARGO 22.00 SUNDAY 31 OCTOBER 2021
SIR MICHAEL PALIN URGES PUBLIC TO HELP SAFEGUARD THE FUTURE OF THE UK’S CHURCHES
A national debate to help safeguard the future of the UK’s local churches has been launched by the National Churches Trust, the UK’s church buildings support charity.
With
an increasing number of churches and chapels facing closure, ‘The
Future of the UK’s Churches’ debate highlights the community, economic,
heritage and spiritual benefits of churches.
It
also gives the public a chance to have their say on how some of the
UK’s most important local buildings can be saved for future generations.
‘The
Future of the UK’s Churches’ debate is being backed by Michael Palin,
Vice President of the National Churches Trust. He said:
“The
UK has over 39,000 church buildings. The restrictions of COVID-19,
resulting in reduced funding and fewer worshippers, has clouded the
future for many of them.
Yet
churches remain a vital and much-loved part of the UK’s history and
heritage and we can’t let them fall into neglect and disuse.
There
is hope. More and more churches are adapting to the modern world and
the needs of their communities, providing not just spiritual comforts
but a range of valuable services to local people such as foodbanks and
youth clubs.
We
must build on this, and encourage people of all sorts and from all
backgrounds to find hope and relevance in their local churches.
If
you care as much as I do about the future of these much loved
buildings, do get involved with the National Churches Trust debate about
‘The Future of Churches’ and help shape their future.“
Church buildings manifesto
To
highlight the importance of churches, the Trust has published a church
buildings manifesto in which 16 leading figures make the case for their
future:
They include: Andrew Stokes, the Director of Visit England; Harry Mount, the Editor of The Oldie; the Right Reverend John Arnold, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Salford; Jay Hulme, the transgender poet and performance artist; Alexander Stafford, the Conservative
MP for Rother Valley; Canon John McGinley, Director of Myriad, the
centre for church multiplication and Barbara Eifler, CEO of Making
Music, the charity for amateur musicians.
Church closures are growing
The
number of churches open and being used for worship has fallen from
around 42,000 to 39,800 in the last ten years, according to research
from The Brierley Research Consultancy. Closure has been particularly
acute in some inner-city areas.
Funding
for the repair and maintenance of church buildings has to be raised by
congregations and is not provided by central church authorities. It is
particularly difficult for churches in deprived areas and rural churches
with a small number of worshippers to pay for urgent repairs.
There
are fears that many more may close in the coming years, putting local
heritage at risk and jeopardising the future of community support
services run in church buildings such as youth clubs, foodbanks, mother and toddler groups and drug and alcohol counselling.
In
England, 350 Church of England churches are reported to be at risk of
being closed or demolished within the next five years. In Scotland, at
least 275 churches have closed since January 2000, a decline of 15.6% in
21 years.
Costs and benefits
A
shortage of funding to keep churches in good repair is a key factor
leading to closure. Latest figures show that the Church of England will
have to find £1billion to fund repairs to its 16,000 parish churches in
the next five years.
The
Government’s Cultural Recovery Fund has recently provided £12 million
to help places of worship in England, but with over 900 churches on
Historic England’s ‘Heritage at Risk’ Register more financial help is
needed.
New
figures released by the National Churches Trust show that the repair
bill is vastly outweighed by the economic and social benefit of church
buildings.
The
annual social and economic value of church buildings to the UK is worth
around £55 billion. This sum, calculated using the latest HM Treasury
Green Book guidance, includes the contribution churches make to wellbeing and to local economies.
Claire Walker, CEO of the National Churches Trust said:
“Church
buildings belong to all of us and that’s why we are starting a national
debate about their future. Whether you are a regular churchgoer, a
heritage lover or have been in a church recently to have your COVID
vaccination, please do take part and tell us what you think.
Right
now, many church buildings are in danger. That’s because there isn’t
enough money available to fund urgent repairs and maintenance or to
instal essential facilities such as toilets and kitchens.
Over
900 churches are on the Historic England ‘Heritage at Risk Register’,
with many more in a dire state in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Church
buildings are a unique national asset. It would be a huge mistake to
let them decay when they provide around £55 billion of economic and
social value to the UK each year.
At the heart of the debate are some simple questions:
• Why do church buildings matter?
• What should we do to preserve their magnificent heritage?
• How can more church buildings be made into community hubs?
• What is the best way to pay for the upkeep of church buildings?
Our
vision is that church buildings across the UK are well maintained, open
to everyone, sustainable and valued. At the National Churches Trust we
will continue to do everything we can to support church buildings as we
all stand to lose if we let them disappear.”
ENDS
PRESS CONTACT: Eddie Tulasiewicz 07742 932278 eddie@nationalchurchestrust.org
NOTES TO EDITORS
CHURCHES AND HERITAGE
CHURCHES AND WORSHIP
CHURCHES AND COMMUNITY
CHURCHES AROUND THE UK
KEY FACTS ABOUT CHURCHES
About the National Churches Trust
The
National Churches Trust is the leading national independent charity
concerned with the protection and welfare of churches, chapels and
meeting houses throughout the United Kingdom. We aim to:
a) Provide grants for the repair, maintenance and modernisation of church buildings
b) Act as a catalyst to improve and bring more resources to the management of church buildings
c) Promote the value of church buildings to the community at large
For more information visit www.nationalchurchestrust.org
Distributed by Pressat
