Closing Time?

In Review asked Paul Lewis, Secretary to the Pastoral and Redundant Churches Committee, to explain how the committee is helping to preserve architectural gems for future generations – and giving old church buildings some interesting new leases of life.

How difficult is it to close a church that is no longer used for worship?

The first point, to give some context, is that of the 16,000 Church of England churches across the country, only around 30 are brought forward for closure each year. The process for dealing with any such proposal encompasses wide consultation. Any formal written objections from local residents and others opposing the closure are received by the Church Commissioners, who also call in the interested parties to add a verbal submission if they so desire.

What happens if the decision is made to close a church?

Each diocese is responsible for seeking new uses for closed churches in its area. This work is carried out by a Diocesan Redundant Churches Uses Committee, which usually appoints agents to market these buildings. If a suitable use and purchaser or lessee has been identified, the Commissioners prepare a draft scheme for public consultation.

The final decision about the future of a closed church building rests with the Church Commissioners, helped by the advice of the Advisory Board for Redundant Churches.

People often wonder why churches that have been closed can still be used for occasional services such as weddings?

We make every effort to find alternative uses for closed churches, but for some, their high heritage value and consequent lack of adaptability means that the priority is conservation of the building for the benefit of future generations. In these cases, the church is handed over to the Churches Conservation Trust (CCT), a body that is jointly funded by the state and Church in order to maintain these national gems for ongoing community use. In these cases, the buildings can occasionally be used for religious services.

Should the government help to look after church buildings?

The maintenance of the Church's ecclesiastical estate, including 13,000 listed buildings (embracing 45 per cent of all Grade 1 listed buildings in England), costs around £100m a year – a significant proportion of the Church's total annual spend. State funding given for the upkeep of England’s faith buildings, through English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund, makes up just a small amount of this total, and the Churches Conservation Trust has received no increase in funding for six years in real terms. With the CCT alone preserving over 300 churches for future generations to enjoy – that's more buildings than the entire National Trust portfolio – and 16,000 Church of England churches with congregations too, I think it is more than fair that the government contributes to the pot.

There seems to be a steady stream of features in magazines showing churches that have been converted into luxury flats?

Many are turned over to community uses of some form or other, such as nursery schools, sports centres or exhibition spaces. In fact, 13 per cent are transferred to other Christian bodies for worship purposes, which is the best use for a closed church building – one in Salisbury diocese was recently sold to the Romanian Orthodox Church. Other churches are indeed converted to office or residential use, the latter often with an element of social housing.

What’s the most unusual conversion you've seen?

A couple of sports and activity centres; the scale of many of our buildings means that they are perfect for including indoor climbing walls! One church in Bristol has been converted into a circus skills training centre – I think these are imaginative ideas, as they open up the building to a wide constituency. However, I think most of us would like as many churches as possible to be rejuvenated as places of Christian worship.

So are there any churches that have been re-dedicated for regular Anglican worship?

Fifteen churches have been re-dedicated since 1969, and the rate is growing. That's on top of 532 new churches opened in that period!

Of the churches that you do sell, where does the cash go?

Some goes towards the maintenance of redundant churches pending a decision on their future, and another portion goes towards the Church's share of financing the Churches Conservation Trust. By far the largest amount – at least two-thirds of the proceeds – are returned to dioceses for the support of the living Church, used for purposes such as clergy stipends, housing and new church buildings. In fact, a sum of £27.6 million has gone to support this work in the last 35 years.

St Paul's Walsall, now 'The Crossing St Pauls', includes retail units on the lower floor and flexible worship space on the upper floors.