from Christian Today
The Church of England has said that 37 of its churches have been awarded a combined total of over £13 million under the government’s new Places of Worship Renewal Fund (PWRF).
The PWRF was established following the decision, taken under Sir Keir Starmer, to first cut and then abolish the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme (LPWGS), established during Gordon Brown’s time as chancellor.
One of the key differences between the schemes, aside from the size of the budget, is that under the old scheme historic churches were exempted from paying VAT on repairs.
At the time of the announced change the National Churches Trust (NCT) said it “is likely to mean that projects are cancelled or scaled back, leading to more churches being at risk of closure and further damage to historic buildings”.
After the first round of funding for the new scheme was announced the Church of England’s lead bishop for buildings, Andrew Rumsey, said he was “very glad” for those historic churches which had secured funding, but added that he was “conscious” of the fact that many churches had not received the support they are seeking.
He said, “These grants, to churches in areas of considerable need, will help pay for fabric repairs that enable worship, missional and social action to continue in our communities.
“They will relieve some of the fundraising burden felt by heroic local volunteers who care for our country’s built heritage.”