Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps her Department is taking to support rural listed places of worship in constituencies such as West Dorset if the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme is not extended beyond March 2026.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department has not made a specific assessment of the potential impact of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme ending on listed places of worship in the West Dorset constituency. While we have confirmed the extension of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme until 31 March 2026, the future funding of the scheme after this date is being assessed and considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and the Departmental business planning process.
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, what steps her Department is taking to support heritage assets in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
This Government takes our responsibility to the built historic environment seriously. For this year alone, my Department has committed nearly £60 million of funding for heritage, including £15m for Heritage at Risk.
Funding is administered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Arms-Length-Bodies. Since 1994, The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded £5,540,760 to 110 projects in South Holland and the Deepings.
Historic England has also administered funding in South Holland and the Deepings. This has gone towards projects such as the 2024 - 2027 Lincolnshire Extended Urban Survey, which worked to underpin better decision making, archaeological understanding and design in the county’s towns, and received £211,000.
There are currently 12 heritage assets on the Heritage at Risk Register in the area, and Historic England are actively engaged with all of them. These include conservation areas, listed buildings, and scheduled monuments.
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme gives grants towards VAT paid on repairs and renovations to the nation’s listed sites of worship across the UK. Since August 2022, 41 claims have been paid to 15 Listed Places of Worship based in the South Holland local authority area to a value of £78,125.6.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to reclassify crimes against churches as hate crimes.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable, including that directed at Christians and Christian places of worship.
Churches occupy a valuable position in society through their access to citizens, their role within local communities and their good relationships with other faith groups and this Government is committed to protecting individuals' right to practise their religion freely at their chosen place of worship, and to making our streets and communities safer.
The Government has extended the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme for 2025/26, which gives grants towards VAT paid on repairs and renovations to the nation's listed sites of worship across the UK, which includes churches. Churches are also eligible for funded protective security measures through the Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme. This scheme offers physical security enhancements, such as CCTV, intruder alarms and secure perimeter fencing.
Crimes against churches can already be recorded as hate crimes. Any religiously aggravated criminal damage is an offence under section 30 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, carrying a higher maximum penalty of 14 years' imprisonment. An offence is considered religiously aggravated, if at or around the time of committing the offence, the offender demonstrates hostility towards a religious group, therefore, including any crimes against churches.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to support churches which have been damaged through criminal activity.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable, including that directed at Christians and Christian places of worship.
Churches occupy a valuable position in society through their access to citizens, their role within local communities and their good relationships with other faith groups and this Government is committed to protecting individuals' right to practise their religion freely at their chosen place of worship, and to making our streets and communities safer.
The Government has extended the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme for 2025/26, which gives grants towards VAT paid on repairs and renovations to the nation's listed sites of worship across the UK, which includes churches. Churches are also eligible for funded protective security measures through the Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme. This scheme offers physical security enhancements, such as CCTV, intruder alarms and secure perimeter fencing.
Crimes against churches can already be recorded as hate crimes. Any religiously aggravated criminal damage is an offence under section 30 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, carrying a higher maximum penalty of 14 years' imprisonment. An offence is considered religiously aggravated, if at or around the time of committing the offence, the offender demonstrates hostility towards a religious group, therefore, including any crimes against churches.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will review the limit on the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, previously funded until March 2025, has been extended for one year with a £23 million budget. To ensure the budget remains affordable for this year, claims are now capped at £25,000 per place of worship. These changes were necessary given the inherited fiscal challenges and pressures on other parts of the heritage and cultural sectors. Departmental analysis indicates that 94% of applications will be unaffected by this change, with most claims typically being under £5,000. In order to ensure the scheme is available to as many listed places of worship as possible, within this context, we do not feel it is appropriate to reassess the cap for this financial year.
Asked by: Kirsteen Sullivan (Labour (Co-op) - Bathgate and Linlithgow)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Future funding of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme beyond March 2026 will be considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process. An announcement will be made once this decision is finalised.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December to Question 95479, on Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme: VAT, how many applications to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in the last 12 months exceeded the new £25,000 cap.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Since 1 December 2024, the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme has received a total of 222 applications that exceeded a value of £25,000, with a combined requested value of £12,442,052. Of these, 162 claims totalling £8,793,024 were subsequently approved for payment. All approved claims relate to the 2024/25 financial year, before the new cap came into effect.
A total of 38 applications with a value in excess of £25k have been submitted since 1st April 2025. However, the value of grant award approved for payment against these claims was capped at £25k. I can confirm that since the annual cap of £25,000 per listed place of worship came into effect from 1 April 2025, no applicant has received funding above this £25,000 limit.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question
To ask the hon. Member for Battersea, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the end of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on (a) Christ Church in Woking and (b) other community services run by Churches.
Answered by Marsha De Cordova
The Church of England continues to await proposals from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport for the future of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme and has not seen the results of the Department’s recent evaluation. These proposals will have an important bearing on the repair work that can be undertaken and the Department is aware of our concerns in this respect. With the existing scheme scheduled to end in March 2026, assurance for the future is now urgent.
Were the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme to come to an end, it would mean that every project to repair a listed parish church or cathedral would need to find an additional 20% to cover the cost of VAT, requiring more charitable fundraising, donations, and grants to cover the additional costs needed.
In their ‘House for Good’ report the National Churches Trust (using Treasury Green Book calculations) estimated that £1 invested in a church generates £16 in value for the local community. The impact of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme is significant in enabling substantial community investment, especially in areas with lower economic activity.
In the Woking constituency Christ Church Woking and St Mary of Bethany are listed churches that require significant projects to repair and restore their buildings. Both churches offer support to their local community through addressing loneliness, improving mental health, and providing spaces for young people and intergenerational work. Without the finances to undertake the restoration of these two buildings, the community projects run by these two churches will be at risk, as will be the contribution they make to the local community.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she expects to announce whether the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme will be renewed beyond 31 March 2026.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Future funding beyond March 2026 will be considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process. An announcement will be made once this decision is finalised.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps have been taken to support the heritage sector in maintaining and restoring historic buildings.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) is committed to supporting the heritage sector in maintaining and restoring historic buildings,through direct funding and partnership working.
We provide significant financial support through our Arm's-Length Bodies, primarily Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, who last year spent £287.2m on heritage. We have introduced dedicated funding streams, such as the £4.85m Heritage Revival Fund and the £15m Heritage at Risk Capital Fund, which provides support for the rescue, repair, and adaptive reuse of neglected historic buildings, often focusing on community-led projects and regeneration in deprived areas.
DCMS also supports maintenance through specialist schemes, including the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme which helps cover the cost of VAT on repairs and has been extended until March 2026.