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The process we follow

Most people know about the process for applying for a faculty or a List B permission, but what do you do if an emergency arises? You’ll be glad to know we have a tried-and-tested process in place involving DAC members and the Diocesan Registry team, to ensure we can deal very quickly with any emergencies relating to the church and churchyard. So if a tree has shed a branch overnight, or there is a water leak in the churchyard, or a piece of stonework that is unsafe, please take the following steps.

Step 1 – What has happened and what needs to be done?

  1. See what has happened and put up safety tape in the location if needed. See if any other immediate temporary actions are needed to keep people or the building safe.
  2. Notify others in the parish; the church insurer; the church architect or surveyor; the Archdeacon and the DAC Secretary.
  3. Check what remedial or investigative work is needed and who will do that.
  4. Check availability of contractors.

Step 2 – Getting permission – usually within 24 hours

  1. Once you contact the DAC Secretary, Emma or someone else in the DAC team will ask you to provide photos, quotations, advice from the church professional adviser and any other information to understand what has happened, where it is, and what needs to be done urgently.
  2. We will quickly consult a relevant DAC member or members for advice.
  3. Unless a matter is very minor, we will email the Diocesan Registry with the background and information about the issue.
  4. The Registry will seek urgent directions from the Diocesan Chancellor and reply either direct to you or via the DAC team.
  5. In most cases the Chancellor will direct that the work can proceed urgently as soon as practicable, under authority of an Interim Faculty permission. That allows you to put the work in hand immediately, subject to any conditions the Chancellor has included.

Step 3 – Follow up Once the work has been done, you will usually need to follow up the interim permission with an application for a Confirmatory Faculty. This simply reflects that the work was carried out under an emergency permission. Your application may cover just the work that was done urgently, but if you need to do further repairs or reinstatement, those works can be included in the same application.