Buildings and Churchyards

With the priorities of Living God’s Love, churches are and should be local centres of worship and mission, in which

people can encounter God and be drawn into a worshipping community
parishes can reach out in mission
local communities can be transformed.

Church Buildings

A church is more than bricks and mortar. It is a community of people who, together, live in relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

There is a church at the heart of every community. And each one puts its faith in action. Our churches run food banks and night shelters, host exercise classes, organise farmers markets, and so much more.

Our church buildings can be great assets to mission; this section of the website aims to help parishes work with their buildings by providing information and resources on a range of topics, including:

Permissions, such as faculties and minor matters and how to apply for them;
Caring for your church building, including guidance on maintenance and quinquennial inspections;
Net Zero Carbon guidance, including heating, renewables and the Energy Footprint Tool;
Developing your church building for worship, mission and outreach; and
Grants for repairs, maintenance and development projects.

You can access all of the above using the links on the right of the page.

Churchyards

Churchyards are special places. They can be places of peace, sanctity, history, biodiversity and so much more to so many people in the community. This creates a special set of issues in the need to balance the needs and expectations of a wide range of people.

The Churchyards page, linked on the right, provides advice and guidance on memorials and regulations, maintenance, wildlife and the Living Churchyard project. The Churchyard Regulations aim to ensure that all users of their churchyards are treated with fairness, equity and consistency.

Church Halls

For many PCCs, church halls are an important part of their ministry and mission. They can provide more flexible and versatile spaces than church buildings. In other cases, halls will be a major source of income which supports the work of the church. For more information, contact the Estates Team.

Clergy housing

The clergy house is often at the heart of parish life and as such is really important to you and to us. If you are a clergyperson or a Churchwarden looking after a house in a vacancy please click on the link on the right for more information or contact the Estates Team