Parishes will now be able to apply for grants of up to £10,000 to make repairs to their church buildings thanks to a new funding stream from the national church.
Our diocese has been awarded £135,000 by the Church Commissioners to distribute as a share of the £6.2m fund across the Church of England as part of the Buildings for Mission project. The grants will focus on small-scale but urgent works and ‘stitch in time’ projects that could save larger sums in the long term. The fund will also be able to help cover the cost of essential improvements for the mission and ministry of a church. Example works might include repairs to roofs or windows, the increasing of capacity in rainwater systems to deal with modern rainfall patterns or the upgrading of facilities to help with access within churches.
The fund will open for applications from 1 March, with submission deadlines every 3 months, the first on 31 May 2024 and the last on 31 May 2025.
Archdeacon of Dudley, Nikki Groarke, said:
“Caring for a church building, of whatever age or complexity, is always a difficult task for PCCs. This new fund will help with those routine repairs and improvements, items can often be difficult things to fund from stretched budgets. I hope that our churches will take advantage of this opportunity and apply for funding.”
More information, including application form and eligibility criteria can be found here; the church buildings team will be happy to receive initial enquiries and to help parishes to submit applications, contact churches@cofe-worcester.org.uk
