Save churches from crumbling: give them to the locals
The new Archbishop of Canterbury should prepare for what should be her first challenge: what to do with the third of England’s parish churches, some 3,000-5,000, that stand empty, bleak and hardly ever used. Churches constitute almost half of all Grade I listed buildings, the most prominent and beautiful collection of buildings in England. They are its civic inheritance, its local memory and its place of repose. They are also its greatest conservation crisis.
One thing is clear. Churches are victims of Britain’s manic centralisation. Cash-strapped Historic England is on the brink of withdrawing its deal to repay VAT on church repairs. The Church of England cannot pick up the burden, reluctant to divert money from its national ministry to prop up local historic buildings. Charities can aid a church here and there but nothing remotely meets the need — an accumulated repairs bill of £1 billion. Churches will soon crumble, the way medieval castles crumbled in times past.
There is a straightforward solution and it is applied across Europe. Local churches should be “denationalised”.
Like the local hall, the local museum, the local sports pavilion, it should be owned and used by the community to which it belongs. It must return to local people.
Anglican churches, perhaps all of them, should be transferred by diocesan authorities to parish or town councils, with appropriate arrangements for shared use. Crucial, of course, is money. After some intense lobbying, the 2023 Levelling Up and Regeneration Act specified that parish councils could support places of worship. They can levy a church precept on council tax bills, as they do with parks and gardens. I’m not aware any has yet done so.
Whenever I suggest this to church officials they go into rigor mortis at the idea of change and plead hopelessly for central government help. I point out that church maintenance taxes exist in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Iceland and elsewhere.
The tax is usually voluntary. Those who object can tick a box and not pay, or stipulate an alternative charity. In Iceland it can go to the humanists and in Spain to the state.
In all these countries, however atheist, an overwhelming majority contributes what is usually a pittance to caring for their church: 80 per cent of Danes do and 70 per cent of Germans. Few of their churches are as lovely as England’s.
This is shaming and absurd.
Churches should be transferred, properly protected, into the care of their parishes. It works throughout Europe. It can work here.
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