Asked by: Andy Carter (Conservative - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the (a) value of grants awarded by and (b) number of grant recipients for the Listed Places of Worship Scheme was since 2010.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was established to reimburse the VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship. The grant scheme has been managed by multiple administrators on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport since it was established in 2001, and there are limited data predating 2014. Since 2010, a total of £358,356,027 has been allocated in grant funding to support places of worship throughout the UK. Based on the data the Department does possess, it can be estimated that 22,633 listed places of worship were the recipients of grant funding through the scheme since 2014.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the impact of her Department's Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on places of worship in the West Midlands.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was established to provide grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship. A total of 727 claims have been paid out in the West Midlands, worth £2,935,543, since August 2022.
Asked by: Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to amend the present ability to reclaim VAT under the Listed Places of Worship Scheme.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Listed places of worship represent some of the nation's finest heritage, and HM Government recognises the need to preserve and maintain such hallowed buildings. The Listed Place of Worship Grant Scheme aims to mitigate the cost of doing so and to support listed and protected buildings for the benefit of present and future generations.
There are presently no plans to amend the eligibility criteria for the scheme, but we keep them under review. We have also been working to ensure that the accessibility and uptake of the scheme is improved, particularly through the development of a new website and application process. Officials maintain regular contact with key people and organisations representing listed places of worship, and continue to welcome feedback on the operation and effectiveness of the scheme. I was pleased to visit St Peter and St Paul's church in Albury, Surrey, earlier this year to hear how the Listed Places of Worship grant scheme helped them to carry out repairs to the church roof.
Asked by: Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the value of VAT relief given under the Listed Places of Worship Scheme in each of the past two financial years.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme (LPWGS) was established in 2001 to provide grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed churches and cathedrals. The scheme, which presently handles around 7000 claims per annum, applies to all faiths and denominations and is delivered UK wide. It is currently funded through a combination of £17 million from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s core baseline, together with £25 million available from HMT reserves (so a total of up to £42m total each financial year).
Historically, the scheme has operated with an underspend each year. However, efforts are underway to reduce underspend, including via a new LPWGS website and comms outreach campaign. Initial data since the launch of the website in July 2023 suggests a gradual increase in uptake and grants being made.
The LPWGS website provides details of the annual spend of the scheme, but does not provide details of previous years’ allocations. See here: https://listed-places-of-worship-grant.dcms.gov.uk/about-us/.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish the (a) annual total budget for and (b) amount of money allocated by the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in each of the last five years.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The total annual budget for the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme is £42,000,000 per year. Over the last five years, the funding allocation for places of worship under the grant scheme has been as follows:
In the financial year 2022/2023, a total of £33,952,912 was allocated.
In 2021/2022, the allocation was £25,519,715.
In 2020/2021, the allocation was £28,708,075.
In 2019/2020, the allocation was £35,639,573.
In 2018/2019, the allocation was £35,994,884.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help conserve historic churches in (a) the UK and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport supports the preservation of historic churches through financial assistance provided by the Department's Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme provides grants to cover the VAT expenses associated with repair and conservation of listed places of worship. This includes conservation efforts for monuments situated in listed places of worship. These grants apply when the monument is an integral part of the building's structure.
Since August 2022, £39,054,024 has been funded to historic churches across the UK through the grant scheme. In the Romford constituency specifically, the total funding since August 2022 has been £60,619.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which listed places of worship in (a) the North East and (b) Sunderland received funding since 2019; and how much each received.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme was established to provide grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places or worship. Through this grant scheme, 829 awards have been issued to places of worship in the North East of England since 2019, amounting to a total of £3,532,709. In Sunderland, 39 awards have been issued to places of worship since 2019, amounting to a total of £663,885.
A dataset showing a full list of grant scheme recipients since August 2022 is available here on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nearly-5000-churches-across-the-united-kingdom-benefit-from-42-million-conservation-fund.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which listed places of worship in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) South Holland and the Deepings constituency have received funding since 2017; and how much each received.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, jointly funded by HM Treasury and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to provide up to £42 million per annum, was established to provide grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship. Through this scheme, 1,177 grants have been awarded to places of worship in Lincolnshire since 2017, amounting to a total of £3,882,071. In the South Holland and the Deepings constituency, 130 grants have been awarded since 2017, amounting to a total of £323,285.
A dataset showing a full list of grant scheme recipients — including those in both Lincolnshire, and the South Holland and the Deepings constituency — since August 2022 is available here on gov.uk.
Dec. 22 2023
Source Page: Nearly 5,000 churches across the United Kingdom benefit from £42 million conservation fundFound: Karen Rooms, Dean Designate of Leicester Cathedral said: The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme is
Asked by: Lord Redesdale (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what amount of financial support was provided to local church buildings, excluding cathedrals, for fabric repairs in 2022–2023 by the Department for Digital, Culture Media and Sport and arm’s length bodies, such as the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has funded church buildings through the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, which makes available £42 million per annum. This scheme provides grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship.
In the period from 2022 to 2023 a total of £16,949,526 was provided to local churches, excluding cathedrals, for conservation and maintenance work from this scheme.
Additionally, the National Lottery Heritage Fund awarded £15,759,986 to places of worship in England over the same period.
Historic England also provided public funding in this period for local churches through different funding programmes. A total of £218,286 was granted for urgent emergency works to church buildings in England in use for worship. In addition, grants were made through Historic England to churches, chapels and one tabernacle which are no longer in use for worship to a total of £902,453.