Decision time for the Department of Culture, Media & Sport: will they spend their budget on helping churches?

The details of the Spending Review were announced today by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. The Department of Culture, Media & Sport [DCMS] has been given a £7.5 billion budget for the next three years. One choice DCMS must now make is whether to fund the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme – a scheme that has so far saved over 13,000 churches but now faces an uncertain future.

“With so many churches across the country unable to pay for repairs, we are going to see even more fall into despair and close,” says Sir Philip Rutnam, Chair of the National Churches Trust.  

“It is the most vulnerable in society that loses out if this happens. The DCMS can help halt this heritage crisis by funding the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme in their budget – without a harsh cap – so that any listed place of worship can claim back the full 20% of VAT costs which will help to keep their church open and serving the community.”

New research shows devastating trend of fewer churches in England are being saved from disrepair

• 99% of all places of worship currently at risk in England are churches
• Number of historic churches being saved each year has reduced by 80% since 2018
• Number of historic places of worship at risk has almost doubled since 2013 to nearly 1,000, from 536 to 969

There is limited data about heritage at risk in Scotland and Wales, but the overall picture is the same. Indeed, in Scotland the Church of Scotland is closing as many as 40% of its churches.

In the same period there has been a huge fall in the funds available for major repairs since a dedicated grant scheme was scrapped by the Lottery in 2017.  The Lottery has now introduced more help, but it is too soon to know whether this will reverse this trend. If churches have to pay VAT on repairs this will simply make the problem much worse - all these buildings depend on local people to raise the funding needed.  

“The data is alarming and shows that the eye has been taken off the ball when it comes to protecting the UK’s heritage,” continues Sir Philip Rutnam.  

“Changes to the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme will only have exacerbated this trend. If the scheme is not extended and the cap is unchanged, we will see a greater decline of churches. We risk losing some of the nation’s greatest heritage for good – once it is gone, we cannot get it back.”

Why spending money on churches makes economic sense  

Churches are vital for tourism and run a huge amount of community services at no cost to the government.

Churches provide £55 billion a year of social and economic good. They also provide food banks, parent and toddler groups, warm spaces for the vulnerable, mental health support, youth groups, and host thousands of voluntary groups like Alcoholics Anonymous. This figure is a conservative estimate made by independent economic analysts. It also reduces cost pressures on the NHS by £8.4 billion a year - the same as employing 230,000 nurses.

Historic churches are a huge draw for tourists, with 40 million visits to churches per year.

“For every £1 that is invested in church buildings, £16 of social good is generated,” says Sir Sir Philip Rutnam, Chair of the National Churches Trust.

“Investing in churches makes good economic sense. These buildings are the anchor for thousands of communities, delivering huge social and economic benefits at no cost to taxpayers. It’s time this got recognised properly right across Government.”  

DCMS must fully fund the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme

The budget for the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme was slashed by tens of millions of pounds in April by the Government. A cap of £25,000 was also added, meaning many churches cannot claim back the full cost of VAT on their repairs. More than 250 churches have already been affected by this harsh change. The scheme currently runs out in March 2026, so DCMS will need to decide this year if it will save the scheme. 

Churches need our help. Hear from two of the churches affected by the cruel cap

Totnes St Mary's 15-year project now faces uncertain future

Part of the Totnes landscape for more than 500 years, Grade I Listed Totnes St Mary is on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register – listed as "poor" and facing “slow decay”. Its floor is now not just a conservation concern – but also a health and safety one too. Parts of the floor are sinking, and other parts are now raised up. This is due to water and damp underneath the building, expanding and contracting, and destroying the floors.  

The building is now damp and extremely cold – making it unusable in the winter months. The church is already having to limit the amount it can do due to the poor condition of the building. The weekly cafe is only run monthly in the winter due to the cold.

Used by the community for everything from weekly cafes, classical concerts, book launches, talks and lectures to choir practice, it is also open from dawn until dusk every day and attracts 50,000 visitors a year, from people wanting to enjoy the heritage or just find somewhere quiet to reflect and pray.

The building needs urgent repairs, and after 15 years of planning, St Mary had raised the money needed for a huge repair project. But the cap that was introduced this year means they now have a gigantic shortfall.  

“This is a big knock for us,” shares Father Jim Barlow, Rector at St Mary.

“The project has been over 15 years in the planning and has already been through major restructuring. With the government decision on the grant scheme, we will now have to find at least a further £150k and maybe as much as £200k. Given that we have already been supported by nearly all the major funders for church heritage projects, it is not clear where this would come from.  

“This is really disheartening for those who have worked so hard and for the local community. The worst-case scenario is that it puts the whole project in jeopardy, putting a significant investment in the local heritage fabric at risk. The project has already been through value engineering once, so making further cuts will be extremely difficult and detrimental.”

St Mary Magdalene in Nottinghamshire now has an un-budgeted deficit in excess of £600k this year  

St Mary Magdalene church has been closed since November to undertake repairs to the leaking roof and crumbling stonework. It was expected to reopen in December 2025, but now its future is uncertain.  

The church is an architectural landmark in Newark and has the fifth highest spire in the country. The 14th century octagonal spire stands tall at 236 feet. This is eight-and-a-half times as long as a London bus.

It is Grade I Listed and on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register – classified as being at ‘immediate risk of further rapid deterioration or loss of fabric.’

“I am a churchwarden at the 12th century parish church which is a Grade I listed building,” says Andrew Fearn, Church Warden at St Mary Magdalene.

“I am also the Project-lead for the £4 million restoration project. This has been in gestation for some five years. At the end of 2024, we signed the contract for the restoration work to commence and this is now underway with the church closed until the end of the year.

“ Needless to say, it was a huge struggle to raise the funding and our budgets are predicated on taking advantage of the Listed Places of Worship Grants scheme to reclaim VAT. We have already made our first successful claim which was well in excess of £25k. As a consequence of the partial removal of the scheme, we are now facing an un-budgeted deficit in excess of £600k this year.”