Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding has been allocated through the Places of Worship Renewal Fund to places of worship in Northern Ireland.

The Places of Worship Renewal Fund is England only as Heritage is a devolved policy area. The Northern Ireland Government received Barnett consequentials at the Spending Review, taking into account any changes to DCMS’ overall settlement. It is for the Northern Ireland government to consider whether to set up new arrangements should they so wish.

We are working closely with other funders in the sector to ensure that opportunities for funding places of worship throughout the UK are maximised. The NLHF already offers grants for places of worship across all the UK and is currently investing £100m over 3 years through National Lottery Heritage Grants and a strategic initiative designed to provide targeted support to build capacity.