Making historic places of worship fit for purpose

“Generally the best way of securing the upkeep of historic buildings is to keep them in active use” (Government Planning Policy Guidance 15, section 3.8). English Heritage supports the efforts of congregations to keep their historic place of worship in use wherever possible.

Places of Worship and the proposed new system of heritage protection

St Mary’s,Taunton, one of 20 churches involved in the Taunton Heritage Protection pilot project. The Church of England document Building Faith in Our Future laid down a series of challenges, one of which was the importance of modernising the Church's building stock and making best use of it.

English Heritage wants to play a full part in helping the Church to meet this challenge and is working with it to explore how the appreciation and management of historic churches and churchyards can be improved as part of the Government's reform of the heritage protection system, which covers listing, scheduling and registering.

Pilot projects to test1 a new approach are underway at Canterbury and Rochester Cathedrals and at a group of churches in the Taunton Deanery within the Bath and Wells Diocese.Another is planned with a group of rural churches in the Lincolnshire Wolds.

Building understanding

We strongly believe that a clear and precise understanding of why a listed church is so important is essential in order to make sensible and realistic management decisions.

The Taunton Deanery pilot project,now underway in the Bath and Wells Diocese, involves revising the current list descriptions to explain what makes churches like St Mary’s,Taunton so special. The entries will go beyond the scope of old designation documents and include new research, an historical as well as architectural appraisal, an archaeological understanding of the site, an assessment of fixtures and fittings, and a consideration of the churchyard setting.

“Evensong…when only two or three are gathered in My Name, in a hamlet or village, is one of the times I feel closest to Heaven. I discovered this over 50 years ago when I was a history student.” Rabbi Lionel Blue

The new descriptions will clarify which parts of these buildings are adaptable for new uses and which parts are less so. They will help congregations both in the formulation of plans for the future and in managing change as it happens.

The aim of our pilot projects is to ensure that the Government's current proposals work in harmony with the existing 'ecclesiastical exemption' system. At Taunton, we are concentrating on how to make it simpler for congregations to carry out basic repairs to churches by highlighting where the two systems – the Church's 'faculty' and the secular controls – overlap and exploring ways of reducing the time and resources churches have to spend on completing repeat applications.

We are also exploring how to develop partnerships between all the bodies who get involved in changes to churches, the individual church itself, deaneries, dioceses, the Council for the Care of Churches, local authorities, amenity societies and English Heritage, to encourage planning ahead and a positive rather than reactive approach to managing the building.

Statements of Significance

"We set about rediscovering our church history and asking what St Martin's is for. It's an experience many churches go through when facing major change. When we began, we thought it might be a distraction from our very practical work of caring for people in need. Actually it's intensified what we do and how we pray day to day. Renewing the buildings has taught us about what it means for this place to be 'the house of the Lord' and for us to be God's people." Revd Nicholas Holtam Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields in London which is undergoing major new works

All Church of England and Methodist congregations applying to carry out changes need to include a 'Statement of Significance' and a 'Statement of Need', a justification for the change, with their application. A Statement of Significance is not just a description of the church in architectural or artistic terms, but also an assessment of what is considered significant by the congregation. The new list descriptions will be a significant help in preparing these.

As part of Inspired! English Heritage will be offering additional help to congregations to write effective Statements of Significance. We are also asking for new money from Government to 'train trainers' around the country, who can help congregations enjoy learning about their place of worship, write good-quality Statements and communicate this knowledge of their buildings to all who visit.