Oral Answers to Questions

Kevin Bonavia Excerpts

Thursday 3rd July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Marsha De Cordova]

The hon. Gentleman rightly highlights that there are other ways to acquire funding, such as through the heritage lottery and so forth. I will certainly write to him if there are specific places that he is concerned about. Although the grant scheme is for the Church of England, I am certain that there is other support for churches, and I can certainly put him in touch with the relevant people, if that is helpful.

[Kevin Bonavia (Stevenage) (Lab)]

4. What steps the Church of England is taking to support community cohesion in its parishes.

[Sarah Smith (Hyndburn) (Lab)]

9. What steps the Church of England is taking to support community cohesion in its parishes.

[Marsha De Cordova]

Through the parish system, the Church of England has a presence in every community. Long-term relationships are vital for building trust and understanding in all our communities, and the Church has worked closely with faith organisations, local authorities, the police and so forth—all in aid of building better relations.

[Kevin Bonavia]

I would like to take this opportunity to commend the contribution of the churches in my constituency, from All Saints in Datchworth, which is currently celebrating 850 years of service, to St Mary’s in Aston, where the Rev. Canon Jenny Gray has recently retired. However, another church, St Andrew & St George in the centre of Stevenage, is facing the ongoing problem of theft of copper from its roof—an expensive loss to the church. What can be done to safeguard our churches from such antisocial and criminal behaviour?

[Marsha De Cordova]

I thank my hon. Friend for asking two really important questions. I congratulate the Rev. Canon Jenny Gray on her retirement. Her exemplary service to the community was recognised by the diocese in 2023, when she was made an honorary canon of the cathedral.

On metal theft, my hon. Friend is absolutely right that it is criminal and antisocial, and it causes real harm. The Church has been doing a lot of work on this since 2013, and I am happy to write to him to set out that work in more detail.