Yorkshire and the Humber

The following few case studies, some of which were used in the report Building Faith in the Future, are from the Yorkshire and the Humber region. They follow the same order as the chapter headings in the report.  Please note that it may not have been possible to find case studies for every heading.  If you know of other cases which may be of interest, please let us know.

WORKING WITH REGIONAL PARTNERS

Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber, Angels and Advocates: Church Social Action in Yorkshire and Humberside, Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber Ltd (20 New Market Street, Leeds, LS1 6DG), November 2002 (www.crc-online.org.uk or email info@crc-online.org.uk)

“In view of the extent and range of church social action, public bodies should involve churches as partners in the development of regeneration and social policies in the region. Churches should be included in strategic partnerships and networks of service deliverers. Public bodies should recognise and develop partnerships with churches as an important element in delivering service to excluded groups within society. The level and nature of partnership with churches should be subject to annual review and monitoring by public bodies. The churches, through the CRC, should continue to monitor church social action in the region”. (Angels and Advocates: Church Social Action in Yorkshire and the Humber)

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The Churches Regional Commission (CRC) for Yorkshire and the Humber

The Yorkshire and the Humber model presents an example of good practice under which the faith representatives on the different secular and regional bodies are underpinned by a secretariat, thus enabling them to network and follow up initiatives.  

The CRC is a Christian organisation established to facilitate cohesion and regeneration in the Yorkshire and the Humber region in partnership with the Church, regional agencies and projects on the ground. It aims to represent churches, with a single voice, to regional bodies; to advocate the significance of faith and to work as partners in the region as well as national and international bodies. It brings a distinct  ethos and voice as an independent ‘stakeholder’ at regional level.

The CRC was set up in 1998 to bring together a Commission of wide expertise, committed church involvement and a diversity of background in key areas of regional life to offer a strategic view with practical experience. It is now made up of 25 people from across the region supported by an executive staff team.

CRC is represented on the Yorkshire and the Humber Assembly, one of its leading members was a Board member of  Yorkshire Forward, since its inception, it  works as a social inclusion partner with the Government Office for Yorkshire and the Humber and contributes to breadth of perspective and activity of Yorkshire Culture. Churches are recognised in Yorkshire Culture’s strategy and CRC supports a member of their Board.  

CRC provide responses to consultations on policy for the region and has set up Task Groups to deliver on key areas such as Social Inclusion, Rural Renaissance, Inter-faith, Culture, Heritage and Tourism and Lifelong Learning. It remains accountable to Church Leaders through the Regional Church Leaders Reference Group, to local churches and individual Christians through Annual Conferences,  newsletters and email interest groups. Through practical seminars and conferences, CRC also aims to help equip churches as integral partners in an inclusive and cohesive society and to enable them to act as partners in regeneration.

One of CRC’s current development issues is to continue to demonstrate the distinct value of church activity to the regional economy, in the areas of social and community activity and cultural, heritage and tourism.

In November 2002, CRC published Angels and Advocates: Church Social Action in Yorkshire and the Humber which set out to provide a measure of social action and good practice from across the region. It largely focused on urban action.

"The Reports aims are :-

• to encourage local churches to engage in social action and to enable them to share good practice;
• to enable public bodies to understand how the churches are acting as partners in regeneration; and
• to enable church leaders to give a strategic steer to this work.

(Source: Angels and Advocates: Church Social Action in Yorkshire and the Humber)

Church social action is any action taken by the churches or individual Christians which addresses human needs and is provided for people who are not church members.

"Church social action is driven by Jesus’s call to us to ‘love our neighbour as ourselves’ and to work with those who are excluded from a decent quality of life." (Source: Angels and Advocates: Church Social Action in Yorkshire and the Humber)

The research has produced the following picture. There are around 4,000 churches and 420,000 active Christians in Yorkshire and the Humber which make a vibrant and significant contribution to life in the region. These churches engage in some 6,500 social action projects. Between 50,000 and 70,000 churchgoers are regularly involved in church social action and a similar number engage in social action not organised by the churches. There are some 3,000 staff on church projects; over 150,000 people benefit regularly from church projects. The economic value of church social action to the region is likely to be between £55 and £75 million a year.

These projects cover children, families and young people, education and training, activities for older people, cafes and pop-ins, homelessness, relieving poverty and financial exclusion, advice and counselling, women and men, health and disability.

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Homelessness projects:

The St George’s Crypt project in Leeds has a long tradition of caring for homeless people through its night shelter facilities and other services.

Now in its 14th year, the Sheffield Cathedral Breakfast and Archer Project at Sheffield Cathedral serves an average of 770 breakfasts and 265 lunches each month to homeless people with additional services such as provision food parcels, a café, dental care and training in writing and computer skills. This is an essential service that is dependant on the help of schools and churches across Yorkshire. Building on this work, a new Community Resources Centre is being developed on the Cathedral site, to increase help and support for the vulnerable and the socially excluded. Plans are being developed to provide daily hospitality and care, social and recreational facilities, and shower and laundry rooms and to create a medical room for nursing, chiropody, dental and psychiatric care and also facilities for a more extensive educational programme.

Rotherham Homeless Project developed from a Churches Together Sunday Night Café initiative to provide meals for the homeless and disadvantaged; it now involves over 20 members from agencies and churches.

St John’s Bowling Parish Church Youth and Drug Dependency Project, Bradford. East Bowling is an area of multiple deprivation. The community is multi-ethnic. 27.4% of the population are under 16 years of age (higher than the district average) and almost 20% of children live in lone parent families.

The Youth Base project grew from street work with young people in the early 1990’s. Its an outreach project operating under the umbrella of Olive Branch Trust, a registered charity with the Vicar as the Chair of the Trustees. It employees a team of 7 as well as volunteers. One of the workers is paid for and is based at the Bradford Cathedral Community College. It is the only youth provision of its kind in East Bowling and offers formal education in an informal setting, study support, careers guidance, support and advice, other resources and activities such as street hockey, and break dancing. There are closed sessions for girls to allow the Asian Community to take part. Statistics for the last 12 months show that 226 young people came at some time during the six two hour sessions held each week, 267 were met during three weekly detached street work sessions and 58 and 80 respectively took part in street hockey sessions and break dancing. 147 were usefully occupied during the six weeks of summer activities.

A former factory unit purchased last year for £238,000 is now the base for a project to help young people who have a drug problem. 

Supporters and partners of Youth Base include Holmewood Advice Centre, West Yorkshire Police, Careers Bradford, Bradford Metropolitan Council Recreation Division, Bradford Cathedral Community College, Aids Care and Education and Training, Youth Justice, Local Authority Youth Service, Diocese of Bradford, YMCA and the congregation at St John’s.

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What the church is doing for itself to further enable church social action:

The report makes clear that the vital ingredients on which the success of church action depends are leaders and staff, volunteers, buildings, funding and support networks.

Churches already have the first three elements although leaders and staff and volunteers do need training, guidance and support. There are well over 3,000 buildings in the region located in virtually every community. These buildings are being used extensively by the  church and many other organisation. Some need adaptation to allow extended use, while others are faced with long term maintenance and repair bills, but are as yet untapped assets.  It is also recognised that individuals and churches do need guidance and support to prevent them and their projects becoming isolated and exhausted. The Anglican Diocese of Sheffield has employed a Faith in the City Worker to support churches embarking on projects for over 10 years. In Hull, a body called SEARCH was established and secured funding and recruited a research and development worker who support local churches who are already engaging in social action or wish to, facilitating networking and sharing of good practice. SEARCH now have a post in East Riding as well. CRC is funding similar work in North Lincolnshire and in North East Lincolnshire. In North Yorkshire, CRC have also funded a project worker helping small businesses and farms in a particular areas assess advice and help, and supporting volunteers from churches to do this.

In 1999, the Churches Together for regeneration in South Yorkshire was set up with funding from  Europe, and the Church Urban Fund to finance regeneration adviser posts in Barnsley, Doncaster, Sheffield and Rotherham and to establish a church regeneration strategy group in each town. In West Yorkshire, the churches have established ‘Active Faith Communities’, an organisation funded by the Anglican Dioceses and CUF, again to support local churches. A similar body is being planned for North Yorkshire. 

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CHURCHES AS A CENTRE OF VOLUNTARY AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITY

The Thornbury Centre, Thornbury, Bradford

In 1991 the former stone church of St Margaret's, that had stood on the site at Leeds Old Road since the last century, was declared unsafe and demolished. The Church members retreated to the adjoining dilapidated church hall building where they decided they wanted to continue and expand its service to the local multi-ethnic, religiously diverse community and do something about the appalling social inequality in the area.  Bradford has a very wide cultural mix and Thornbury itself is split between predominately white & Asian populations. The new building therefore was born out of the need for a meeting place for the whole community, a place where everyone is accepted and welcomed regardless of background and faith With the support of the Bradford Diocese, the Bradford Metropolitan District Council, the adjacent Primary school and other local groups, an award winning community complex that also houses the church, St Margaret’s, within it, was created. By 1998, the total project cost of £2.7 million had been secured with funding from the Millennium Commission, the PCC of  St Margaret’s, the Diocese of Bradford, Church Urban Fund, ERDF, Yorkshire Forward, and others.

Opened in 1999, the centre now offers:

• a computer training centre
• Homestart, which supports young families under stress
• a nursery
• an Arts Regeneration project, working to enable the creativity of local people
• a refugee project
• conference facilities
• a Council-run lending library
• a Café which also provides training opportunities in English and traditional Asian food
• a fully equipped 250 seat auditorium used for Sunday Christian worship and other activities

The building also integrated the latest environmentally-friendly technology including large areas of suncool glazing to south facing elevations, pre-cooling for summer months, condensing boilers and high levels of floor, wall and roof insulation.

"Altogether a powerful building with an inspired, beautifully executed design touch. Which is an invaluable asset- both architecturally and socially - to this impoverished area of Bradford. It is likely to remain for many years the most significant building for miles around." (Source: Richard Giles, Church Building Magazine 1999)

The Cottingley Cornerstone Centre, Bradford – this is a project in progress, modelled on the Thornbury Centre and a good example of church and secular local gov. working together to regenerate area.

The existing church of St Michael and All Angels, built in 1968, was demolished in 2003 because of structural problems and a new church and community centre is being developed on the site partly modelled on the Thornbury Centre in Bradford. It will provide a large multi-use hall, meetings rooms, computer suite, community cafe, advice centre and facilities for residents. 50 houses will also be built on the site.

The community of Cottingley is a poor area and has suffered from severe vandalism over several years.

“From out of the heartbreak of vandalism and destruction we seek to create a new heart in the heart of Cottingley, working with the whole community. Despite the repeated vandalism, the community remains resilient and upbeat. Christ is still very much at the heart of the community." (Source: Reverend Sue Pinnington February 2003)

The Project was launched in March 2003 by the The Bishop of Bradford, the Right Reverend David James, Bradford Council leader Margaret Eaton,  and the Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, John Lyles. Two documents were signed at the launch including a covenant between St Michael's Church and Bradford Council to work together for the regeneration of the Littlelands site and a second document signed by representatives of the Cottingley community, making  a "commitment to work together as a community serving the people of Cottingley".

The Centre will incorporate various agencies who will each have their part to play in funding as well as use of the site and facilities. The whole community is being included in the consultation as to the proposed design and layout of the building and also on the types of activities to be incorporated. The project may take up to 2 years to complete.

The usage proposed include: Church, Public meeting rooms, Large Multi-purpose Hall, Elderly Day Care Centre, Disabled Centre, respite care for young disabled people, GP Surgery, IT Computer Suite linked to Shipley College and Cottingley Village Primary Homework Club, Pre-school Nursery Facilities, Dedicated Youth room, Craft room for displays etc., Kitchen and Bar area, Police contact point.

Funding for the project will come from the sale of houses, church sources,  National Lottery,  Capital Grants from Statutory Agencies, Charitable Trusts, Commercial sponsors, Stakeholder capital, and local fund raising. The Business Plan for the whole project is in the region of £10 million for the entire scheme.

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THE URBAN CHALLENGE

Holy Trinity, North Ormesby, is in an urban priority area in Middlesbrough (within the 2% of most deprived wards in England). The old Church Hall had been serving the community since 1894, but was structurally failing. The parish decided to build a new multi-purpose church owned and run community based centre linked to the Grade II church and facing the market place. An appeal was launched in April 2002 and in eight months one of England’s most needy communities had raised over £800,000.  Money came from 29 regional and local organisations and trusts including The Community Fund, and the Middlesbrough Partnership through the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, the Middlesbrough Single Regeneration Budget, Lloyds TSB, English Partnerships, The Diocese of York Social Care Fund, Dow Chemical Company and not least the 1st North Ormesby Baden-Powell Scouts and the North Ormesby Minstrels. The Trinity Centre was opened on the 1st December  2003 and offers its local community:-

• a 200 seater main hall capable of sub-division
• a flexible stage for performances
• meeting rooms and offices of various sizes
• modern well equipped kitchen facilities
• link with main church and the cloistered garden

Users and use now include coffee mornings, bingo, scouts, after school clubs, the Dramography Project which brings performing arts to children, drama and dance groups, suicide care, teenage contraceptive advice, health facilities, slimming clubs, flower club, Jazz Band, and a Monday Club for the  over 60’s. The Primary Care Trust and many local children’s groups also use the centre.

 Seen as the flagship for regeneration of the area, partnerships have been formed with the University of Teeside School of Health and Social Care, and the Middlesborough Primary Care Trust to provide training and advice to the community. As further evidence of the confidence that this project has now brought to the area, Tees Valley Housing is to develop £5m new social housing next to the Centre and is keen to see the Centre offering a service to local residents. There is also to be a £7m new medical village and a further 200 homes ranging from houses for sale or apartments to rent, and homes where care can be provided.

“The Dramography Project has been a god send to us. Its educated my son and been so much fun at the same time”. (Sue Keenan, a parent)

The Trinity Centre, centre by name and central by location, offers a new and exciting possibility for both Church and community in North Ormesby. I believe it is a clear sign that the Church’s place is always right at the heart of the community it seeks to serve.”  (The Most Revd and Rt Hon Dr David Hope.)

St Bartholomew’s Church Centre is located in one of the most deprived areas in Sheffield Diocese. It is both a place of worship and a focus for a wide range of community activities.  It employs a Centre Co-ordinator and activities currently include Mother and Toddler Groups, youth groups, links with the local school, nursery and residential care home, elderly people’s lunch club, art and crafts group, yoga, dance classes, Mental Health group meetings, Stroke Association meetings and local authority groups including the Housing Association and Credit Union. Its motto is ‘Building up community, breaking down barriers’.

The Vine Trust, Bradford is based in a difficult part of Bradford where there are high levels of crime and drug abuse among young people.  Founded upon Youth Work, the  parish and the Trust have run and are running outreach projects aimed specifically at girls and young women, 11-16 year-olds,  careers advice to 16-24 year-olds. One project has focused on a specific housing estate and has run rock-climbing trips, camping holidays, a bike maintenance course and a community clean-up day. It has been so successful that the young people themselves have asked to form their own committee to take the project further.

Also run sports teams, provide drop-in sessions with computer access for young people regardless of ethnicity or faith and a Summer Programme of activities bringing together all those involved with any other project.

“Living round here was boring before I started doing stuff with The Vine”.

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THE RURAL CHALLENGE

Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber, Sowing the Seed: Church and Rural Regeneration in Yorkshire and Humberside, Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber Ltd (20 New Market Street, Leeds, LS1 6DG), October 2003 (www.crc-online.org.uk or email info@crc-online.org.uk)

This report was to complement the Angels and Advocates report which had been largely urban and its main aims were to:-

• Give a snapshot of the countryside at a time of huge change;
• Celebrate the significance of the rural church, and of faith in action;
• Analyse current policy and see ways forward for rural communities;
• Encourage rural churches to engage in social action, to promote good practice and to facilitate the strategic development of church social action in rural areas through partnerships of churches, public agencies and voluntary organisations.

Problems faced by rural areas at the moment include hardship faced by farmers due to the decline in income to be had from many farming activities, increased regulation and competition from cheaper food imported from abroad, and the recent crisises of first BSE and then FMD. Rural areas also suffer from lack of affordable housing for young people, lack of local full time, well paid employment, limited services including public transport, access to a local post office or shop and an higher than national average population of older people.

" There is a difference in the way that the urban church and the rural church serve their communities. In rural areas there is not the same capacity for large church-based projects; rather we see individual Christians, within the diversity of the rural church, involved in community-based projects and existing structures and organisations, which must continue, as well as some important smaller initiatives that churches are taking." (Sowing the Seed: Church and Rural Renaissance in Yorkshire and the Humber)

Most rural churches offer generalised support rather than the specialised services that can be offered in urban centres because of their higher overall populations.

Just to take one of the four areas, in Skipton and its surrounding area, there are 19 churches, 10 halls and 4 C of E schools. Within these premises, there are 42 regular activities for children, 11 for young people, 12 for older people. 11 churches run drop-in clubs or cafes – often central to the social life of their particular community.

Case studies:

1. The Farm Crisis Network (FCN) consists of a network of groups of volunteers drawn from the farming community and rural churches who are prepared to “walk with” farming people and families as they seek to resolve their problems and difficulties. During the Foot and Mouth Crisis,  FCN in partnership with rural churches made contact by letter or phone with all farmers in that locality and provided on-going support. This was backed up by further complimentary activity by local churches.

2. The Lighthouse Project in Skipton: Open two lunchtimes a week, three course meals, help and support provided to about 80 people with drug problems or who are homeless every month. Run by 8 volunteers from the Skipton Christian Fellowship, it is funded entirely from donations from other churches and members of the public.

3. The Villages Youth Project (VYP) set up by a Committee of Christians 15 years ago to provide activities for young people isolated in rural areas due to difficulties of accessing facilities and services because of  limited public transport and time.  A registered charity, VYP is funded by a cocktail of organisations working in partnership (as is often the case): local churches, local authorities, local businesses and national and local trusts. Run and staffed by Christians and backed by all the parish churches in the villages it serves, it runs youth clubs at Burton Fleming, Reighton and Hunmanby offering sports, arts and crafts designed to provide opportunities for self expression and other activities designed to foster conversation on key issues.  There is also a cyber link, an interactive website, an office, an IT drop-in and a mini bus that is used to ferry young people to and from the activities.

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CATHEDRALS

Ripon Cathedral

A small North Yorkshire market town of 16,000. A moribund economy for several years in need of regeneration. Arising out of networks built up over years, the City Council and Cathedral got together to write 8 Lottery applications, 7 of which were successful. The projects together were designed to produce a kick start to regeneration. The Cathedral itself benefited from two of the projects, the first repaving the Cathedral’s forecourt as part of the scheme to repave Ripon’s streets to improve the tourist experience and secondly the full restoration and re-opening of Thorpe Prebend House, the medieval Canon’s house. It now houses an interpretative and education centre for the Cathedral and the City and also tells the stories of Lewis Carroll and Wilfred Owen who both had connections with Ripon. Costing £1.4 million funding came from English Heritage, Heritage Lottery Fund, local authority and Yorkshire Forward.  While the Cathedral has benefited, Thorpe Prebend House has also become an icon for tourist regeneration in the city.

The Ripon City Manager and the Cathedral then obtained funds from Yorkshire Forward for a concerted marketing strategy and worked together with the local tourist attractions to publicise the Cathedral, the City and all the surrounding ‘Ripon Ring’ attractions which include Fountains Abbey and Newby Hall.

The Cathedral is continuing to work with the City including the planners, the RDA, and the other attractions with the aim of further developing Ripon as a tourist destination in its own right.

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TOURISM AND VISITORS

The North Yorkshire Church Tourism Initiative

Four years ago, the Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber and the Yorkshire Tourist Board commissioned a feasibility study into the potential for developing a Christian heritage trail in North Yorkshire. Although this study concluded that a trail would be difficult to implement due to size of county and its geographical diversity, it did reveal that there was huge scope for developing ‘church tourism’ in the county.

The North Yorkshire Church Tourism Initiative came out of this research. Funding for the project was obtained from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Yorkshire Forward and the Countryside Agency, and also church organisations, including The Open Churches Trust, Local Authorities and National Park Authorities.

The adverse impact on tourism of Foot and Mouth, the events of September 11th and severe flooding in some parts of the region, gave this initiative even more importance.

Aims are:-

• To increase visitors’ understanding and enjoyment of the county’s churches as spiritual, cultural and heritage assets;
• To provide opportunities for churches to build links with the wider community;
• To increase the contribution that churches can make to sustainable tourism especially in rural areas;
• To encourage churches to provide a more effective ministry of welcome to visitors.

In April 2002, a project co-ordinator was appointed. To date, a total of 255 churches across several denominations and 9 major ecclesiastical sites are currently involved in the project. Seven local church tourism groups have been created which are developing their own strategies for promoting sustainable church tourism.

To help and encourage local communities to interpret and present their churches for visitors, grants are available to pay for resources such as the production of guidebooks, displays, exhibitions etc..A number of workshops have also been held across North Yorkshire which aim to stimulate ideas, offer practical advice and look at the implications of opening churches and the benefits that can be reaped by the local communities and visitors. A series of leaflets was launched in March 2003 and an accompanying website which give details of open churches, forthcoming events, service times etc can be visited at www.yorkshirechurches.com

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The Rotherham Church Tourism Initiative

The RCTI was established in 1999 with the aim of aiding the economic and social regeneration of Rotherham’s local communities by developing the tourism, education and heritage potential of our fine ecclesiastical buildings. For many years Rotherham and the surrounding villages were important centres of industry. Much of this has now gone and resilience of local communities has been severely tested. This initiative is one of many which attempts to create new opportunities, a new image and a new future for the Borough.

RCTI aims to increase access to and awareness of Rotherham’s ecclesiastical buildings. We are independent and work with all faith communities and buildings to attract tourists, school groups and local people to experience their history and heritage.

We organise events, produce guidebooks, information leaflets and publicity material and recruit and train local individuals and groups to work at the events organised and to participate in RCTI as a whole. We also offer advice and guidance about interpreting church buildings to churches/dioceses across the country.

Currently there are over 500 volunteers who have undertaken training in 3 main areas: Church Welcoming, Interpreting Your Church and First Aid First Response. Additional training has been offered, including Tour Guiding for Adults and Children, Medieval Architecture and IT. These courses have given people the confidence to lead tours and to get involved with RCTI and their local community.

RCTI has recently received a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund to continue the project over the next 3 years to 2006.

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EDUCATION

Wakefield Cathedral has opened the Westmorland Centre in partnership with the Local Education Authority, Wakefield Metropolitan District Council, the local FE College and the Wakefield adult learning network which is a citizenship and education centre. It offers free basic skills course in ICT, literacy and numeracy. We offer a safe and secure environment for those who feel socially  vulnerable (Quote from response to above survey March-April 2004).

Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, York.  This Churches Conservation Trust church is being used for local schools to support the teaching of local history. There is a full time Custodian and various workshops are offered including storytelling sessions relating the true story of an infamous nineteenth century local prophetess documented in church and local records as well as contemporary national newspapers.  It provides pupils with the opportunity to empathise with the characters and learn about local history in an exciting and interactive manner. Wearing special protective gloves, pupils can examine items in the handling collection (which come from a recent excavation).  These provide opportunities for the children to act as detectives, answering questions posed by the use of such primary evidence – key skills needed to learn about history.

There is also an art workshop: Simple plywood templates to fit onto A4/ A3 sized paper, enable students to create their own window designs using the stained glass as a stimulus.

All Saints, Harewood, West Yorkshire.  This Churches Conservation Trust church is an example of using churches as peformance spaces. Near Leeds, it lies in the grounds of Harewood House.  In the summer of 2003, the Trust combined in partnership with the House and Education Leeds, Music Support Service to provide opportunities for pupils to work with professional musicians.  Three schools used the house, and its grounds to compose their own musical arrangements, which were then performed for an invited audience at the church.

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MAKING THE BEST USE OF BUILDINGS

York – a study of six city churches. York, like many cities which were influential in mediaeval times, has a large number of churches in the city centre where there is a small though gradually increasing residential population – but high visitor potential and a thriving daytime economy.  Some churches have been redundant for some years and have been converted to other uses –including an early music centre, an archaeological centre, an elderly people’s centre and a restaurant.

A report in 2002 recommended making six further churches redundant. After further discussion the Revd Simon Stanley was appointed to develop a strategy to keep the buildings open, and seek ways of helping PCCs develop fundraising skills. 

Holy Trinity, Micklegate is a large monastic church now being supported by a small congregation. The aim is to create a Regional and possibly even National Centre for Religious Communities. It would be there for the use of all religious communities themselves, where they can meet with each other and have services. It would also be a centre where visitors including schools could come and find out about the nature and history of religious life. ‘Meet the Monk’ days have already started during which a member of a religious community will talk about their life and community.

All Saints, Pavement is on a busy thoroughfare and has to be constantly monitored. Over last decade £750,000 has been spent on repairs and still more to be done. It has been decided to concentrate on its status as the City Church where the Church meets the City. It is a City Guild Church and is much used by the City Guilds and 34 mayors of York City are buried there. Three out of five Sundays have military services including the Royal Dragoon Guards, and Veteran groups.

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