Labour savaged as 976 UK churches and cathedrals at ‘risk’ | Politics | News
As some of the UK’s historic churches are at risk, Labor has been told to bring a crucial scheme back to full capacity. Friends of the Friendless Church have called on Rachel Reeves to get rid of the grants scheme for listed places of worship, which gives places of worship relief on their VAT bills. A video online said: “In the UK you can demolish a church without VAT. But if you want to repair it you have to pay VAT.”
He added: “It is such a ridiculous situation we find ourselves in that we hope the Government will restore this scheme to its full capacity when the Budget is announced later this month.” On 1 April 2025, a new cap of £25,000 per listed place of worship was introduced. Inside a blog postFriends of Friendless Churches added that the status quo “clearly sets the tone for what this Government values”, with development “valued more than heritage” and historic churches treated as “poor relations”.
Marcus Walker, a Church of England clergyman in the Diocese of London, wrote of
It is stated that there are 976 churches, chapels, meeting houses and cathedrals in total. Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register.
Sir Philip Rutnam, Chairman of the National Churches Trust, said earlier this month: “These statistics should be an alarm bell for the Government – now is the time to act to save these important buildings before they fall further into disrepair.
“Once these buildings are gone, they are gone forever. There is no second chance to save them.
“The fact that so many buildings are at risk in the constituencies of all political parties shows that this is a cross-party issue and something they can agree on.”
The government has announced that it has extended the grant scheme until 31 March 2026, with a budget of £23 million.
“This will continue to allow religious organizations to claim grants covering eligible VAT costs paid for repairs and renovations,” officials said on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) website.
“To ensure the scheme remains within budget, a new cap will be introduced limiting the total amount for any house of worship to £25,000 next year.
“Places of worship may make more than one claim, but their total must not exceed £25,000.”
