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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance her Department provides on financial support available from (a) her Department and (b) national heritage organisations for unlisted places of worship.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not hold the responsibility for funding support or guidance for non-listed places of worship. Successive Governments have followed the principle that it is for faith communities themselves to be responsible for the management and upkeep of their places of worship. However, some resources and alternative sources of guidance are available.

Historic England’s Repair Grants for Heritage at Risk can allocate grants to unlisted structures possessing notable historic or architectural significance within conservation areas or London boroughs. The Heritage Funding Directory, maintained by The Heritage Alliance and the Architectural Heritage Fund, provides an extensive list of available funding sources for heritage assets that might not hold listed status.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund also offers support to places of worship through its funding programmes, with the goal of bolstering the resilience of places of worship, building engagement with the local community and cultivating sustainability. The Heritage Fund does not require built environment assets to be designated and applications are assessed on their own merits and in competition with other applications.

Unfortunately, some places of worship are vulnerable to hate crime. The Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme is overseen by the Home Office and provides funding for places of worship and associated faith community centres that are vulnerable to hate crime. A separate scheme for synagogues is run by the Community Security Trust.