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347265

	registered interest
	date	28/05/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Bats
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what discussions the Church Commissioners have had with the Department for Communities and Local Government on changes to planning regulations that could increase the supply of places suitable for bat roosts and reduce the incidence of bats roosting in churches.
	tabling member constituency	North Herefordshire
	tabling member printed	Bill Wiggin
	uin	407
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/06/2015 answer text <p>Following the General Election the Church Commissioners plan to seek an early meeting with the Department for Communities and Local Government regarding changing the regulations on bat roosts. In recent years the Church of England has seen increased numbers of bats using church buildings as roosts. This increased usage of our church buildings by bats for roosting is causing considerable strain on the parish communities and volunteers who maintain the parish churches alongside the great expense in cleaning and restoration of items of great religious, cultural and historic significance. In extreme cases the presence of bats is preventing the building being used for worship or by its wider community.</p><p>The Church of England is working alongside Natural England on a substantial Heritage Lottery Fund bid which will seek to provide physical and long lasting solutions for the worst affected churches and create a wider support network for those with smaller or transient bat populations. Both St . Margaret of Antioch, Wellington and St Mary’s Church, Pembridge in my Hon Friend’s constituency have faced significant problems with bat populations. Both churches are part of the Heritage Lottery Fund bid and have already installed mitigation measures. We hope the bid for support will be successful and that this might then be able to bring some relief to churches across the country.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 02/06/2015 10:42:20 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1428 label Biography information for Sir Bill Wiggin

348080

	registered interest
	date	02/06/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Clergy: Females
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, how many members of the clergy in each of the last 10 years have been women.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing, Southall
	tabling member printed	Mr Virendra Sharma
	uin	734
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/06/2015 answer text <p>The most recent statistics available on the number of women in ordained ministry in the Church of England can be found in the table below. These figures combine all clergy who are full time or part time stipendiary clergy and those who are self-supporting clergy. Although more recent figures are not yet available, the general trend is towards an increase in women training for ordained ministry and the Church of England has most recently appointed three women as bishops who are:</p><p> </p><ul><li><p>The Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Revd Rachel Treweek,</p></li><li><p>The Bishop of Stockport, Rt Revd Elizabeth Lane,</p></li><li><p>And the Bishop of Hull, Rt Revd Alison White.</p></li></ul><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Female</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Male</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012</p></td><td><p>3,650</p></td><td><p>7,725</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>3,575</p></td><td><p>7,843</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010</p></td><td><p>3,535</p></td><td><p>8,087</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2009</p></td><td><p>3,401</p></td><td><p>8,257</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2008</p></td><td><p>3,414</p></td><td><p>8,531</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2007</p></td><td><p>3,268</p></td><td><p>8,645</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2006</p></td><td><p>3,119</p></td><td><p>8,785</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2005</p></td><td><p>2,986</p></td><td><p>8,936</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2004</p></td><td><p>2,654</p></td><td><p>8,852</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 08/06/2015 16:31:11 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1604 label Biography information for Mr Virendra Sharma

348081

	registered interest
	date	02/06/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Clergy: LGBT+ People
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what statistics the Church Commissioners collect on the number of LGBT men and women in the clergy.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing, Southall
	tabling member printed	Mr Virendra Sharma
	uin	735
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/06/2015 answer text <p>The National Church Institutions of the Church of England do not maintain a record of the number of LGBT clergy.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 08/06/2015 16:33:24 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1604 label Biography information for Mr Virendra Sharma

381793

	registered interest
	date	17/06/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Solar Power
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what proposals the Church Commissioners have received to allow community energy generation using church roofs for solar panels.
	tabling member constituency	North Herefordshire
	tabling member printed	Bill Wiggin
	uin	3028
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2015 answer text <p>The General Synod of the Church of England is committed to the whole Church reducing its carbon footprint. One strategy which is proving popular in local communities is for the Church to use solar installations on its roof to generate energy for the benefit of the surrounding community.</p><p>Examples where community generation is working well can be found in St John's Church, Old Trafford and St George's Church, Kemp Town, Brighton where both churches are part of an energy cooperative. The Church of England is committed to environmental action and finding creative solutions to reduce the energy demands of its own buildings, more detailed advice can be found at <a href="http://www.churchcare.co.uk/" target="_blank">www.churchcare.co.uk</a></p><p><br></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 22/06/2015 13:17:47 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1428 label Biography information for Sir Bill Wiggin

381794

	registered interest
	date	17/06/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Solar Power
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what support she is providing to churches for the installation of PV panels.
	tabling member constituency	North Herefordshire
	tabling member printed	Bill Wiggin
	uin	2916
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2015 answer text <p>The Church of England’s Church Buildings Division offers advice and support to churches across the country who are seeking to generate energy from their roof. While this may not be appropriate for all sites there are a growing number of listed church buildings, currently over 200, who have successfully managed to install solar panels. One of the best examples of the use of solar panels is the 10th century All Saints Church in Wing, Buckinghamshire which has installed solar panels on the nave and south aisle roofs. More detailed advice can be found at <a href="http://www.churchcare.co.uk/" target="_blank">www.churchcare.co.uk</a></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 22/06/2015 13:12:53 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1428 label Biography information for Sir Bill Wiggin

384613

	registered interest
	date	22/06/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Peterborough
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether the Church Commissioners plan to dispose of land for residential development at (a) Paston Reserve and (b) Norwood in Gunthorpe, Peterborough; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Peterborough
	tabling member printed	Mr Stewart Jackson
	uin	3389
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2015 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners have two strategic land sites at Peterborough; Paston Reserve and Norwood. Both sites are allocated as residential urban extension sites in Peterborough City Council’s adopted Core Strategy and Site Allocations Development Plan Documents. It is the Commissioners’ intention, over the long term, to make these sites available to facilitate the delivery of housing and other infrastructure.</p><p> </p><p>Paston Reserve currently has planning permission for 1,050 houses, local facilities (including a primary school), open space and other infrastructure. Development of the first residential phase started on site in 2014, and comprises 87 houses. The first houses on site were sold by the developer, Keepmoat, in early 2015. Discussions in regard to a second phase of development are currently underway.</p><p>With respect to Norwood, the Commissioners worked with the local planning authority through the development plan process, which saw the site’s allocation for 2,300 new houses, and are committed to bringing forward the land for development. Pre-application work is currently being progressed with the other landowners across the site and initial discussions have been had with Peterborough City Council about the site’s delivery and potential timescales for an outline planning application.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/06/2015 09:52:30 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1551 label Biography information for Lord Jackson of Peterborough

416164

	registered interest
	date	04/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which Church of England churches in the Diocese of Blackburn have been subject to metal theft from roofs in each year since 2012; and which such churches were redundant churches.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	8387
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/09/2015 answer text <p>With regards to open churches the number of churches in the Blackburn Diocese which have suffered from metal theft can be found on the chart below. The chart shows the volume of claims have dropped dramatically since 2011 when the Scrap Metal Dealers Act was enforced there are still a small number of persistent gangs operating across the country who continue to damage and vandalise these local community assets. The total number of thefts does not tell the whole story as the cost to the individual parish which has suffered the damage is often considerable to repair, replace and take preventative steps against future thefts.</p><table><tbody><tr><td>Year Claim Made</td><td>2011</td><td>2012</td><td>2013</td><td>2014</td><td><p>Total</p></td></tr><tr><td>Dicoese of Blackburn</td><td>73</td><td>27</td><td>14</td><td>13</td><td>127</td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Churches listed below have registered 50 thefts in the specified period and are the worst effected, in addition to the list below 49 other churches have registered 77 claims in this period.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Listed</strong></p><p> </p><p>1 Lytham St Cuthbert – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>2 Colne St Bartholomew – Grade1</p><p> </p><p>3 Chorley St George – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>4 Chorley St Peter – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>5 Charnock Richard Christ Church – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>6 Cockerham St Michael – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>7 Hoole St Michael – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>8 Bamber Bridge St Saviour – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>9 Grimsargh St Michael – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>10 Walton-le-Dale St Leonard – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>11 Church Kirk St James – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>12 Accrington St John Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>13 Over Kellet St Cuthbert Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>14 Leyland St James Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>15 Mellor St Mary Grade II</p><p> </p><p>16 Douglas in Parbold Christ Church Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>17 Kirkham St Michael Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>18 Woodplumpton St Anne – Grade11*</p><p> </p><p>19 Chorley St Laurence – Grade 11 *</p><p> </p><p>20 Bolton le Sands Holy Trinity – Grade11*</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Unlisted</strong></p><p> </p><p>21 Blackburn St Luke with St Philip</p><p> </p><p>22 Layton St Mark</p><p> </p><p>23 Thornton le Fylde Christ Church</p><p> </p><p>24 Fleetwood St Nicholas</p><p>25 Little Thornton St John</p><p>Closed churches are the responsibility for the care and maintenance of a closed church rests with the Diocesan Board of Finance during the time that a use is being sought following closure. There are currently very few closed churches in the Diocese of Blackburn and we are not aware that there has been lead roof theft from any closed church in Blackburn Diocese in the years from 2012. We are aware of one earlier theft of lead from the roof of a former church building in the Great Harwood area of Accrington. This building has since been demolished and the site sold for residential development.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 10/09/2015 13:34:47 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

416766

	registered interest
	date	04/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which non-redundant Church of England churches in the Diocese of Blackburn (a) have and (b) do not have food bank collection points.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	8578
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/09/2015 answer text <p><br></p><p>The Diocese of Blackburn works closely with ‘Together Lancashire’, a church-linked social action network run by Church Urban Fund. According to ‘together Lancashire’ there are currently around 36 food banks in the diocese of Blackburn, of which 6 are Trussell Trust foodbanks (Blacburn, Fylde, Ribble Valley, Morecombe Bay, Skelmserdale and Ormskirk). These food banks handed out an estimated 35,000 food parcels in 2014.</p><p><br></p><p>Nearly all these initiatives are church-led (though not necessarily Church of England) projects. A directory and map of food banks in Lancashire (including the unitary authorities of Blackpool and Blackburn &amp; Darwen) is available at: <a href="http://www.cuf.org.uk/node/618257" target="_blank">http://www.cuf.org.uk/node/618257</a></p><p><br></p><p>Separately, a Church in Action survey of Church of England clergy, which was published in January 2015, included a series of questions about church support for food banks. 1,812 church leaders took part in the survey. Of the 39 responses from Blackburn diocese:</p><p><br></p><ul><ul><li><p>31 churches (80%) were involved in some way in supporting a local food bank</p></li><li><p>6 offered church premises for the food bank</p></li><li><p>11 were helping to manage a food bank</p></li><li><p>14 were providing volunteers</p></li><li><p>29 were collecting food</p></li></ul></ul><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 08/09/2015 16:16:51 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

416767

	registered interest
	date	04/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: North West
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which Church of England churches in the Diocese of (a) Blackburn, (b) Manchester, (c) Liverpool and (d) Carlisle were sold in 2014; and how many such churches were sold to (i) other named protestant churches, (ii) named orthodox churches, (iii) other named Christian organisations, (iv) named non-Christian organisations, (v) organisations planning to use them for housing and (vi) organisations planning to use them for other named community uses.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	8994
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2015 answer text <p>From the records held centrally by the Church Commissioners, Closed Churches Division of the four dioceses mentioned only two closed churches were sold in 2014, both in the Diocese of Manchester, Primarily for use for nursery, playschool and other educational purposes, but not to named institutions. <br></p><p> </p><p>Very few Church of England church buildings are closed for regular public worship in any year and where such buildings are closed, the duty placed on the Diocese and the Church Commissioners is to seek a suitable use for the building.</p><p> </p><p>In 2014, in addition to the two closed church buildings mentioned above a further 14 closed Church of England buildings were sold and 3 leased across England: 5 for community purposes; 3 for use as a monument; 5 for residential use; and 4 for worship by other Christian bodies.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 09/09/2015 15:23:15 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

416768

	registered interest
	date	04/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which Church of England churches in the Diocese of Blackburn were subject to metal theft from rooves in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014; and which such churches were redundant.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	8993
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2015 answer text <p>With regards to open churches the number of churches in the Blackburn Diocese which have suffered from metal theft can be found on the chart below. The chart shows the volume of claims have dropped dramatically since 2011 when the Scrap Metal Dealers Act was enforced there are still a small number of persistent gangs operating across the country who continue to damage and vandalise these local community assets. The total number of thefts does not tell the whole story as the cost to the individual parish which has suffered the damage is often considerable to repair, replace and take preventative steps against future thefts.</p><table><tbody><tr><td>Year Claim Made</td><td>2011</td><td>2012</td><td>2013</td><td>2014</td><td><p>Total</p></td></tr><tr><td>Dicoese of Blackburn</td><td>73</td><td>27</td><td>14</td><td>13</td><td>127</td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Churches listed below have registered 50 thefts in the specified period and are the worst effected, in addition to the list below 49 other churches have registered 77 claims in this period.</p><p><br></p><p> </p><p><strong>Listed</strong></p><p> </p><p>1 Lytham St Cuthbert – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>2 Colne St Bartholomew – Grade1</p><p> </p><p>3 Chorley St George – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>4 Chorley St Peter – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>5 Charnock Richard Christ Church – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>6 Cockerham St Michael – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>7 Hoole St Michael – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>8 Bamber Bridge St Saviour – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>9 Grimsargh St Michael – Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>10 Walton-le-Dale St Leonard – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>11 Church Kirk St James – Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>12 Accrington St John Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>13 Over Kellet St Cuthbert Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>14 Leyland St James Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>15 Mellor St Mary Grade II</p><p> </p><p>16 Douglas in Parbold Christ Church Grade 11</p><p> </p><p>17 Kirkham St Michael Grade 11*</p><p> </p><p>18 Woodplumpton St Anne – Grade11*</p><p> </p><p>19 Chorley St Laurence – Grade 11 *</p><p> </p><p>20 Bolton le Sands Holy Trinity – Grade11*</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Unlisted</strong></p><p> </p><p>21 Blackburn St Luke with St Philip</p><p> </p><p>22 Layton St Mark</p><p> </p><p>23 Thornton le Fylde Christ Church</p><p> </p><p>24 Fleetwood St Nicholas</p><p>25 Little Thornton St John</p><p>Closed churches are the responsibility for the care and maintenance of a closed church rests with the Diocesan Board of Finance during the time that a use is being sought following closure. There are currently very few closed churches in the Diocese of Blackburn and we are not aware that there has been lead roof theft from any closed church in Blackburn Diocese in the years from 2012. We are aware of one earlier theft of lead from the roof of a former church building in the Great Harwood area of Accrington. This building has since been demolished and the site sold for residential development.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 09/09/2015 13:10:26 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

418106

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Cemeteries
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which Church of England dioceses have published regulations on monuments on burial plots and inscriptions on gravestones; which dioceses (a) allow and (b) do not allow nicknames on gravestones; which dioceses allow monuments; which dioceses (i) allow and (ii) do not allow pictorial etchings on gravestones; and which dioceses (A) allow and (B) do not allow free-standing containers on burial plots.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	9765
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2015 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally, while there is central guidance available, each Diocese and Parish applies the regulations to their local circumstances. Without more specific information about which parish is being referred to in the question further comment is not further comment is not possible.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Our advice would be to contact the Diocesan Registrar for Blackburn will know how these regulations are applied locally. The Registrar can be contacted at the Diocesan Office:</p><p> </p><p>Church House, Cathedral Close, Blackburn, BB1 5AA</p><p> </p><p>You may also wish to refer to page 4 of the Diocesan guide to the churchyard regulations available at the following link. <br>This document gives the general advice for the Diocese of Blackburn.</p><p> </p><p><a href="http://www.blackburn.anglican.org/images/Information/Churchyard%20Regulations%202014.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.blackburn.anglican.org/images/Information/Churchyard%20Regulations%202014.pdf</a></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 15/09/2015 12:43:52 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

418158

	registered interest
	date	07/09/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Food Banks
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to support communities to the demand for Church-run food banks.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
	tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
	uin	901263
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/09/2015 answer text <p>Following the 'Feeding Britain' report published by the Hon. member for Birkenhead and the Lord Bishop of Truro in December 2014 the Church has continued its monitoring of food bank usage and offering support for those who are in need of the emergency food services.</p><p> </p><p>81% of the 16,000 Church of England parishes are offering support to a food bank with two-thirds involved in running or operating a food bank,</p><p>76% of churches collect food for a local food bank,</p><p>39% provide volunteers,</p><p>29% help to manage one,</p><p>22% give out vouchers</p><p>14% offer the use of their premises.</p><p> </p><p>More information about the work of the Church of England and our involvement with foodbanks can be found in the following Church Urban Fund report: Church in Action</p><p><a href="http://www.cuf.org.uk/sites/default/files/PDFs/Research/Church-in-Action-2015_0.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.cuf.org.uk/sites/default/files/PDFs/Research/Church-in-Action-2015_0.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 10/09/2015 12:05:39 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

422184

	registered interest
	date	19/10/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Land
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what progress has been made on land disposals for residential housing by the Church Commissioners at (a) Paston Reserve and (b) Norwood urban extensions near Peterborough; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Peterborough
	tabling member printed	Mr Stewart Jackson
	uin	12406
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2015 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners have two strategic land sites at Peterborough; Paston Reserve and Norwood. Both sites are allocated as residential urban extension sites in Peterborough City Council’s adopted Core Strategy and Site Allocations Development Plan Documents. It is the Commissioners’ intention, over the long term, to make these sites available to facilitate the delivery of housing and other infrastructure.</p><p /> <p>The construction of Paston Reserve, which has planning permission for over 1,000 houses, local facilities (including a primary school), open space and other infrastructure, began in 2014. The first residential phase of development comprises 87 houses and the first houses on site were sold by the developer, Keepmoat Homes, in early 2015. Discussions in regard to a second phase of development on the site are underway and it is expected that work on site will commence in late 2016.</p><p /> <p>With respect to Norwood, the Commissioners worked with the local planning authority through the development plan process, which saw the site’s allocation for 2,300 new houses, and are committed to bringing forward the land for development. Pre-application work is currently being progressed with the other landowners across the site and initial discussions have been had with Peterborough City Council about the site’s delivery and potential timescales for an outline planning application.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 27/10/2015 16:23:31 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1551 label Biography information for Lord Jackson of Peterborough

423838

	registered interest
	date	26/10/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church Commissioners: Credit Unions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church Commissioners are taking to promote the use of credit unions in the work of the Church of England; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Harrow West
	tabling member printed	Gareth Thomas
	uin	13505
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/10/2015 answer text <p>The Church of England’s work in support of credit unionshas been led by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Task Group on Responsible Credit and Savings, chaired by Sir Hector Sants. Nationally, the Task Group has developed a number of strategic, church-led initiatives, including matching the resources of local churches with the diverse needs of local credit unions through the Church Credit Champions Network. To date, the pilot scheme has engaged over 200 churches, trained 150 Credit Champions and is on target to bring in 3,000+ new credit union members across London, Southwark and Liverpool dioceses, with plans to roll out to 30 more dioceses from next year.</p><p>The Church of England is also running the ‘LifeSavers’ programme which is piloting a holistic financial education programme linked to savings clubs in primary schools. This was trialled successfully in Church of England primary schools during 2015 and will be rolled out to a further 120 church and community schools from early 2016, helping to raise the profile of credit unions in these communities.</p><p>Locally, dioceses and churches are involved in a wide range of activities in support of credit unions, from running mass sign-ups and marketing campaigns and recruiting volunteers to the board of credit unions to hosting access points in church building and promoting payroll saving through links with local employers. According to a Church Urban Fund survey, 17% of Anglican parishes are actively involved in supporting credit unions in various ways. This activity has generated widespread coverage in national and local media, raising public awareness of credit unions. Further information is available on our dedicated website: <a href="http://www.toyourcredit.org.uk/" target="_blank">www.toyourcredit.org.uk</a></p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 28/10/2015 12:03:33 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	177 label Biography information for Gareth Thomas

428465

	registered interest
	date	16/11/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Land
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, for what reason the Church Commissioners have not released land for the construction of a primary school, in accordance with previous legal undertakings, at the Paston Reserve urban extension in Peterborough; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Peterborough
	tabling member printed	Mr Stewart Jackson
	uin	16388
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/11/2015 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners are involved in the development of Paston Reserve in Peterborough. Within the development there is provision for a site and financial contributions towards the delivery of a primary school site as outlined within the agreed Section 106 legal agreement that accompanied the planning permission, and that was varied by agreement with the Council in 2010. The Section 106 agreement provides that the primary school site must be delivered prior to any house occupation on the third phase of development on the site and also outlines the trigger points at which the financial contributions for the school will be provided.</p><p /> <p>Based on these legal requirements, the land for the primary school site at Paston Reserve has not been provided yet, because the site has not progressed to a third phase of development. The first phase on the site is still under construction, and as outlined in our response to the hon. Gentleman’s question [3389] answered on the 29 June 2015, the second phase of development is likely to commence at some point in 2016. The development remains in accordance with the legal provisions of the Section 106 agreed with Peterborough Council.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 20/11/2015 15:09:13 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1551 label Biography information for Lord Jackson of Peterborough

432202

	registered interest
	date	25/11/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Cinemas
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what investment the Church of England has in cinemas and buildings housing cinemas.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	17708
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2015 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners’ UK investments include just over £300,000 of directly held cinema group shares. In addition the Commissioners have indirect investment exposure to cinemas via property holdings in the Metrocentre, Bluewater and Cheshire Oaks retail shopping centres, all of which contain cinemas. Finally, the Commissioners have identified a very small indirect exposure to a cinema in our UK private equity portfolio.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 30/11/2015 16:55:09 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

432203

	registered interest
	date	25/11/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Newspaper Press
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, in which (a) local and (b) national newspapers the Church of England plans to place advertisements with the text of the Lord's Prayer.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	17709
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2015 answer text <p>The Church of England has no plans advertisements of the Lords Prayer in local or national newspapers. Many national and local newspapers have already covered the story. As of 27<sup>th</sup> November 2015 online articles had received over 5.15 million views.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 30/11/2015 16:56:56 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

432204

	registered interest
	date	25/11/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Cemeteries: Vandalism
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, how many graves in each church yard in each diocese in England were vandalised in 2014.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	17710
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2015 answer text <p>The information requested is not retained at the national level and would incur a disproportionate cost to produce.</p><p /> <p>Wilful damage and theft of monumental stonework causes much emotional and financial distress. The Church is continuing to work with local Dioceses, police, insurers and local communities to improve security and awareness.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 30/11/2015 16:57:46 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

432913

	registered interest
	date	27/11/2015
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Refugees: Syria
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps each Anglican church in the Diocese of Blackburn is taking to assist Syrian refugees.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	18054
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/12/2015 answer text <p>The Diocese of Blackburn is working alongside other dioceses of the Church of England and local faith communities to coordinate their response to assist Syrian refugees. Churches in the diocese have been advised of the type of assistance that can most usefully be offered, working in conjunction with local authorities and other faith communities.</p><p /> <p>The three bishops of the Diocese of Blackburn were amongst the signatories to the letter from Church of England bishops to the Prime Minister, which welcomed the commitment of the Government to provide aid and resettlement, while calling on it to resettle substantially more than 20,000, and made clear the Church’s commitment to help in that task.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 03/12/2015 16:32:49 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

443409

	registered interest
	date	08/01/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Floods: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which Anglican churches within the Diocese of Blackburn were damaged by flooding in December 2015; and what the extent of damage to each such church was.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	21700
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2016 answer text <p>Within the Diocese of Blackburn seven churches and churchyards, the diocesan retreat house at Whalley Abbey and three Church of England primary schools were damaged by floodwater. Many have also found that the boilers and heating systems have been damaged beyond repair and extensive programmes of works will need to be undertaken to both dry the buildings out and restore or replace furniture, carpets and school materials.</p><p>Reports of damage are still being registered across the Dioceses of Blackburn, Carlisle, Manchester, West Yorkshire and the Dales and York. To date 129 church properties have registered substantial damage from the December storms with our insurers, though I expect that figure to rise. The Cathedral and Church Buildings Council of the Church of England will be working with the dioceses to develop robust disaster management and recovery plans and flood adaptation measures for churches and other buildings.</p><p><strong>Within the Blackburn Diocese</strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Parish Name / building</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Grade or * listing / Status</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Type of damage</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Michael’s on Wyre</p></td><td><p>Grade 1</p></td><td><p>Water damage and damage to the boiler</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Michael's, Much Hoole</p></td><td><p>Grade 2*</p></td><td><p>Water damage and damage to the boiler</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Mary the Virgin, Eccleston</p></td><td><p>Grade 2*</p></td><td><p>Water damage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Michael &amp; All Angels, Croston</p></td><td><p>Grade 2*</p></td><td><p>Severe water damage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St John the Evangelist, Lancaster (Incare of Churches Conservation Trust)</p></td><td><p>Grade 2*</p></td><td><p>Severe water damage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St John the Baptist, Tunstall</p></td><td><p>Grade 1</p></td><td><p>Damage to the boiler</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Wilfrid's, Ribchester</p></td><td><p>Grade 1</p></td><td><p>Damage to the graveyard and loss of many burials and monuments</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Whalley Abbey</p></td><td><p>Grade 1 and Scheduled Ancient Monument</p></td><td><p>Major water damage to the Abbey building</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Kirkland &amp; Catterall St. Helen's CofE School <br></p></td><td><p>Primary School</p></td><td><p>Severe water damage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St. Michael's on Wyre C of E School</p></td><td><p>Primary School</p></td><td><p>Major water damage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Whalley CofE School</p></td><td><p>Primary School</p></td><td><p>Basement flooded and water damage</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 13/01/2016 17:09:29 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

443410

	registered interest
	date	08/01/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Floods: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps Anglican congregations within the Diocese of Blackburn have taken to help people affected by flooding that took place over Christmas 2015.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	21701
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2016 answer text <p>The Diocese of Blackburn has been coordinating with its local Gold Command support centre and with Churches Together. Within Preston the Diocese and local churches have set up an emergency centre at the railway station. An additional emergency centre was also set up in Morecambe alongside smaller centres supported by the Diocese in Ribchester and Walton le Dale. In St Michael’s on Wyre the church has also been offering support to the army who were deployed in the parish.</p><p>These centres have been an invaluable support to local communities as a central hub for information and support. In addition local communities have been providing hot food and warm clothing to those who have been flooded out and to relief workers. Churches Together in Lancashire have been coordinating a wider response amongst local denominations and this has enabled many local churches to respond quickly and in those places where their help is most needed.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 13/01/2016 17:00:41 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

443811

	registered interest
	date	11/01/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church Commissioners: UK Membership of EU
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what contingency arrangements the Church Commissioners have made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.
	tabling member constituency	East Worthing and Shoreham
	tabling member printed	Tim Loughton
	uin	21936
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2016 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners and the Church of England Pensions Board manage their investment portfolios using high quality well diversified and long term strategies. The Church Commissioners and Pensions Board believe that they are well positioned for any market re-pricing or uncertainty that may prevail prior to or after the referendum.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 15/01/2016 09:53:04 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	114 label Biography information for Tim Loughton

443926

	registered interest
	date	11/01/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church Commissioners: Land
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent progress has been made on (a) residential development and (b) infrastructure planning on Church Commissioner land allocated as an urban extension by Peterborough City Council at (i) Paston Reserve and (ii) Norwood; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Peterborough
	tabling member printed	Mr Stewart Jackson
	uin	21889
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2016 answer text <p>There are no further developments to report since the answer given by the Church Commissioners to question <a href="http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-11-16/16388/" target="_blank">16388</a> on the 20 November 2015.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 19/01/2016 09:25:23 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1551 label Biography information for Lord Jackson of Peterborough

444139

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: South West
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what grants the Church Commissioners have given to churches in (a) Devon and (b) Cornwall from the Roof Repair Fund in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	Torridge and West Devon
	tabling member printed	Mr Geoffrey Cox
	uin	22084
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2016 answer text <p>The Listed Places of Worship Roof Repair Fund grants are distributed by the National Heritage Memorial Fund, on behalf of the Government. There has been one round of grants to date, announced in March 2015,</p><p>(a) 22 churches in Devon were offered grants totalling £1,199,700</p><p>(b) 7 churches in Cornwall were offered grants totalling £492,700.</p><p /> <p>A second round to distribute a further £25 million allocated by the Treasury is currently open, with applications closing on Friday, 26 February.</p><br /> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 15/01/2016 09:51:56 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1508 label Biography information for Sir Geoffrey Cox

449767

	registered interest
	date	02/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, on how many occasions buildings or parts of buildings have been made available by the Diocese of Blackburn and churches within its boundaries to (a) Christians Against Poverty and (b) other organisations providing debt counselling and employment services or campaigning against poverty.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	25287
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/02/2016 answer text <p>The Diocese of Blackburn and the National Church Institutions of the Church of England do not hold these details and obtaining the information would incur disproportionate cost.</p><p>The Church of England works with a wide variety of debt advice charities at a national and local level. Many parishes will offer space in buildings or allow debt advice surgeries to be held in their churches. Parish clergy often are the first port of call for people in need and regularly signpost individuals to where the most appropriate help and support can be found.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 05/02/2016 14:36:24 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

449941

	registered interest
	date	01/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Community Relations
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to ensure that its buildings are open for wider community use.
	tabling member constituency	Lincoln
	tabling member printed	Karl McCartney
	uin	903466
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2016 answer text <p>The Church of England’s Cathedral and Church Buildings Division developed the open and sustainable churches initiative five years ago, and now 80% of churches provide a function beyond purely worship, with 54% of Anglican parishes running at least one organised activity to address social or community need. Churches are being used as citizen’s advice bureau, post offices, shops, night shelters and food banks. Two recent examples of local projects where the Church has opening its buildings for the wider community in the Lincoln Diocese include:</p><p>St Peter &amp; Paul Church, Algarkirk has been successful in getting through the first stage of HLF funding for a project to host a local heritage center, explaining the history of the area including an oral history project and fascinating details about this Grade I medieval church. The Parish Church has a collection of Victorian stained glass of national quality and furnishings by J.G. Grace who also furnished the Houses of Parliament.</p><p>All Saints Church, Winterton is a Grade 1 Medieval church which has been restored with new community facilities installed to make it more accessible with the help of HLF and other grants.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 04/02/2016 13:51:38 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4028 label Biography information for Karl McCartney

453086

	registered interest
	date	19/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Queen Elizabeth II: Anniversaries
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what plans the Church of England has to mark the 90th birthday of Her Majesty the Queen.
	tabling member constituency	Crawley
	tabling member printed	Henry Smith
	uin	27423
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2016 answer text <p>The Church of England will mark the 90th birthday of Her Majesty with a large number of events and activities at national and local levels, including a national service of celebration at St Paul’s Cathedral. Alongside these events, the Bible Society and HOPE have released a companion book titled “The Servant Queen”, with a foreword written by Her Majesty that discusses how her faith has influenced her service of this nation over the last 90 years.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 23/02/2016 16:28:34 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

453087

	registered interest
	date	19/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church Commissioners: Pay
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what the average hourly earnings for their (a) female and (b) male (i) full-time and (ii) part-time employees was in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	Delyn
	tabling member printed	Mr David Hanson
	uin	27425
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2016 answer text <p>The following information relates to employees of the Church of England's National Church Institutions (NCIs). Senior salaries, gender and race information are published each year in the annual reports of Archbishops’ Council, Pensions Board and Church Commissioners.</p><p>Women make up 55% of the total workforce and hold just over 40% of the roles at a senior level. Most roles fit into a pay banding structure which pays the same for equivalent jobs in each band. The equal pay draft regulations have just been published and the NCIs will be reporting in line with the requirements when they have been passed into law.</p><p> </p><p>Clergy officeholders, as distinct from employees, are paid a stipend rather than a salary. For information female and male Bishops in office receive the same level of stipend. All other clergy officeholder stipends are based on a national stipend benchmark which is set by post and is the same for female and male clergy in each diocese.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 23/02/2016 17:07:28 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	533 label Biography information for David Hanson

454779

	registered interest
	date	24/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	George Bell
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether the settlement the Church Commissioners made to the complainant against George Bell was made directly in relation to allegations against Bell, or on the basis that a complaint made under a subsequent Bishop, was not handled in a way which would be expected today.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	28341
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/02/2016 answer text <p>A formal claim for compensation was submitted in April 2014 and was settled in the autumn of 2015. The settlement followed a thorough pre-litigation process during which investigations took place.</p><p>Following the settlement of the claim the Bishop of Chichester, the Rt Revd Martin Warner issued a formal apology. The statement can be read on the Church of England’s website at the following address: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2015/10/statement-on-the-rt-revd-george-bell-%281883-1958%29.aspx" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2015/10/statement-on-the-rt-revd-george-bell-%281883-1958%29.aspx</a></p><p>The statement from Bishop Warner went on to say that “the response from the Diocese of Chichester in 1995, when the survivor first came forward, fell a long way short, not just of what is expected now, but of what we now appreciate you should have had a right to expect then.&quot;</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/02/2016 16:22:30 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

454780

	registered interest
	date	24/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	George Bell
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether any of the Estates Commissioners saw the charge sheet on which George Bell was found guilty of child abuse on the balance of probabilities.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	28342
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/02/2016 answer text <p>The language of “guilt” and “charge sheets” refers to criminal cases. The claim against Bishop Bell was a civil claim. The civil courts do not use charge sheets and as a result there has not been a charge sheet for the Estates Commissioners to see then or now.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/02/2016 16:23:38 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

454781

	registered interest
	date	24/02/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	George Bell
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, how many people involved in investigating allegations of child abuse made against George Bell consulted his papers and diaries in Lambeth Palace Library in the last three years.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	28343
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/02/2016 answer text <p><ins class="ministerial">In 2013 and 2015 three staff members viewed various sections of the bishop's personal papers held at</ins> Lambeth Palace Library <ins class="ministerial">on two separate occasions.</ins> <del class="ministerial">has no record in the last three years of any of the individuals involved in these investigations making an application to view the papers and diaries of George Bell that are held in the Library.</del></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/02/2016 16:24:51 question first ministerially corrected 06/05/2016 09:26:14 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman previous answer version 47893 answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

457721

	registered interest
	date	04/03/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Repairs and Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the proposed changes to the Landfill Communities Fund on the restoration and repair of listed church properties and church buildings.
	tabling member constituency	Scunthorpe
	tabling member printed	Nic Dakin
	uin	29810
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/03/2016 answer text <p>The Church of England has engaged with the recent consultation from the Treasury over the future of the Landfill Communities Fund. Local churches are able to apply to the fund to support restoration, extension and repair projects.</p><p>Local parishes have benefitted from this generosity since its creation in 1996. Over its lifetime the scheme has enabled churches across the country to benefit from an approximate £75 million worth of repairs. As part of its submission the Church of England asked the Treasury to consider reducing the administrative burdens on applicants to the fund.</p><p>The Church has since received assurances that the scheme will continue and we await with interest further detailed announcements from the Treasury regarding the operation of the fund.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 10/03/2016 16:45:34 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4056 label Biography information for Nic Dakin

516830

	registered interest
	date	28/04/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Community Relations
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what progress has been made on the Near Neighbours programme.
	tabling member constituency	Lincoln
	tabling member printed	Karl McCartney
	uin	904799
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/05/2016 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners welcome the Government’s recent announcement of a further £1.5 million for the Near Neighbours programme, which is administered by the Church Urban Fund. This third round of funding for Near Neighbours will help it build on its successful track record of delivering projects up and down the country to transform local areas by strengthening relationships between those of different religious and ethnic backgrounds on issues of shared concern.</p><p>The Near Neighbours programme has offered small grants between £250 and £5,000, providing seed capital for local groups and organisations who are working to bring together neighbours, to develop relationships across diverse faiths and ethnicities in order to improve their communities. The Near Neighbours grants fund has so far awarded seed capital worth £3.66m to over 1,120 projects. These projects have impacted the lives of 941,000 people and 71% of projects have continued to run after the initial seed capital was spent. All Near Neighbours projects are designed to change hearts and minds by bringing together different communities within a neighbourhood so that they can work together on issues of shared concern and common values.</p><p>More information on Near Neighbours can be found on its website at: <a href="https://www.cuf.org.uk/how-we-help/near-neighbours" target="_blank">https://www.cuf.org.uk/how-we-help/near-neighbours</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 05/05/2016 13:37:26 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4028 label Biography information for Karl McCartney

521107

	registered interest
	date	24/05/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Credit Unions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, how many credit unions have approached churches or church organisations as a result of the Archbishop of Canterbury's #TOYOURCREDIT initiative.
	tabling member constituency	Worcester
	tabling member printed	Mr Robin Walker
	uin	38145
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/05/2016 answer text <p>Churches across England have responded to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s call to support credit unions and other forms of responsible credit and savings. At least 31 out of 40 dioceses have been actively involved in supporting over 50 credit unions in various ways, such as:</p><ul><li>promoting the local credit union in their congregation and wider community</li><li>recruiting credit union volunteers</li><li>hosting training sessions</li><li>opening church premises as credit union access points</li><li>encouraging payroll savings schemes among local employers</li><li>helping to set up school savings clubs</li></ul><p> </p><p>Through the Church Credit Champions Network, one of the core initiatives of the Archbishop’s Task Group on Responsible Credit and Savings, the pilot scheme has engaged over 350 churches in London and Liverpool alone and trained more than 260 Credit Champions to date. Other creative diocesan responses include the Murston Community Bank in Canterbury diocese, Lichfield’s Funeral Project, Southwell &amp; Nottingham’s 100x100 scheme are all designed to raise local awareness of credit unions.</p><p> </p><p>The other core initiative, the LifeSavers programme, is working with eight credit unions across the country to set up savings clubs in primary schools, alongside an integrated programme of financial education. Following a successful pilot, the programme is being rolled out to 120 church and non-church primary schools over the next three academic years with financial support from Virgin Money. Additional funding from Government will help extend the coverage to many more primary schools through a dedicated LifeSavers website.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 26/05/2016 15:51:08 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4091 label Biography information for Mr Robin Walker

524660

	registered interest
	date	13/06/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church of England: Disadvantaged
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, if the Church of England will make an assessment of the effect of austerity on communities in the most deprived areas as measured by the English Indices of Deprivation 2015.
	tabling member constituency	Edinburgh North and Leith
	tabling member printed	Deidre Brock
	uin	40353
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2016 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners have no plans to undertake such an assessment.</p><p>Through its network of parishes and dioceses the Church of England is present in all the communities of England. The clergy and people of the Church of England are well placed to hear, articulate and respond to the needs and concerns of local communities. This plays an important role in informing the public engagement of the Church on social policy matters especially at local level.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 15/06/2016 14:45:40 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4417 label Biography information for Deidre Brock

532425

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	World War I: Anniversaries
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether the Church of England has plans for educational projects to commemorate the First World War in addition to existing centenary events.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	41707
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/07/2016 answer text <p>The Church of England has led many of the commemorative events for the First World War at a local and national level. It would not be possible to list all the activities taking place now and in the future to commemorate the sacrifice of those who fought in the First World War, but each diocese and parish is marking the centenary in its own way.</p><p>A number of dioceses have produced their own resources for use in schools, and in children and youth groups (an example from the Diocese of Derby is here: <a href="http://www.derby.anglican.org/en/resources/ww1/educational-resources/educational-resources-1.html" target="_blank">http://www.derby.anglican.org/en/resources/ww1/educational-resources/educational-resources-1.html</a> ). Church schools have made creative use of local and family history stories, and organised visits to battlefields and cemeteries, to bring the experiences of those who fought in the War vividly to life.</p><p>Parishes have also used churches and war memorials to highlight the service and sacrifice of local people in the First World War. Often working alongside the War Memorials Trust, parishes have taken part in the repair, restoration and cleaning of war memorials, with many recording the names and researching the service histories of those commemorated.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 07/07/2016 13:06:51 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

532426

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Human Trafficking
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps are being taken by the Church of England to tackle human trafficking.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	41718
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/07/2016 answer text <p>In March 2014 the Archbishop of Canterbury, with Pope Francis and other global faith leaders, gave their backing to the Global Freedom Network (<a href="http://www.globalfreedomnetwork.org/" target="_blank">www.globalfreedomnetwork.org</a>), a ground breaking ecumenical initiative to combat modern slavery and human trafficking. The Archbishop is planning an international conference in 2017 with the Ecumenical Patriarch.</p><p> </p><p>The Bishop of Derby has also been at the forefront of work to tackle human trafficking and modern slavery for the Church of England. He has been part of the Santa Martha Process (which looks to improve collaboration between churches and police in the detection of instances of human trafficking) and has developed strategies in his diocese to combat human trafficking and modern slavery.</p><p> </p><p>The Church of England will launch The Clewer Initiative against Modern Day Slavery this autumn. It will provide English dioceses and parishes with strategies for the combating of modern slavery and guidance on how to assist in the provision of victim support and care. The initiative is intended to build on existing capacity and the assistance to dioceses and church networks will be carefully tailored to their specific contexts and needs.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 07/07/2016 13:08:51 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

533643

	registered interest
	date	07/07/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what facilities are available for (a) lactating mothers and (b) the changing of babies within churches in the Diocese of Blackburn (i) during church services and (ii) at other times.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	42226
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2016 answer text <p>The Child Friendly Church Award, now achieved by well over 100 churches in the Diocese of Blackburn, places children at the centre of the worship &amp; ministry of our parish churches. This ensures that mothers who wish to breastfeed will find a warm welcome and adequate provision in these churches. We are grateful to the honourable member for the interest he continues to take in the detailed domestic affairs of the parishes of the diocese. I would encourage him to take this up with the Bishop in his own diocese with regard to making progress at a local level.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 12/07/2016 16:10:34 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

540967

	registered interest
	date	20/07/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Blackburn
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which churches and personnel in Preston and the rest of the Diocese of Blackburn have participated in the English Churches and Cathedrals Sustainability Review.
	tabling member constituency	Preston
	tabling member printed	Mr Mark Hendrick
	uin	43489
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/09/2016 answer text <p>The Cathedral and Church Buildings Division of the Church of England is engaging with the ‘English Churches and Cathedrals Sustainability Review’ centrally on behalf of all the Anglican Cathedrals and Parish Churches in England. Engagement is currently at an early stage. Four workshops are being held in churches this month (September) to help inform a document that will then be widely consulted upon.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 05/09/2016 10:56:03 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

542110

	registered interest
	date	21/07/2016
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Children in Care: Kent
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether the Church of England plans to respond to the report by Professor Sue Proctor on abuse at Kendall House, Gravesend, published in July 2016.
	tabling member constituency	Nottingham North
	tabling member printed	Mr Graham Allen
	uin	43938
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/09/2016 answer text <p>In July 2016 the Rt Revd Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham and then lead bishop for safeguarding, apologised unreservedly to all former residents who continue to be affected by their experiences at Kendall House. The statement can be seen at <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2016/07/statement-on-kendall-house-review.aspx" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2016/07/statement-on-kendall-house-review.aspx</a></p><p> </p><p>The Church of England accepted the review and welcomed its recommendations. The Church’s National Safeguarding Team will include those recommendations in their autumn review and plan to publish an annual review in 2017, which will report on progress made against them. Every diocese within the Church of England has received the report and in line with the review’s findings are considering the implications of this for their own diocesan safeguarding arrangements, past and present.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Mrs Caroline Spelman question first answered 05/09/2016 10:58:02 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	364 label Biography information for Mr Graham Allen

1010759

	registered interest
	date	20/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christianity: Middle East
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Right Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what discussions the Church Commissioners have had on maintaining the Christian community in the Middle East.
	tabling member constituency	Crawley
	tabling member printed	Henry Smith
	uin	193461
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/11/2018 answer text <p>The Church of England continues to work alongside the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem to support the Christian community in Jordan, Syria, Israel, Palestine and Lebanon. The Church also partners and engages with development and mission agencies working to support Christian communities overseas. Regular pilgrimage visits are made by parishes and dioceses of the Church of England, mainly to those holy sites that are not in conflict zones and which often involve meetings with local Christians</p><p><br>Westminster Abbey will be holding a special service on the 4th December at which His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales will attend to offer encouragement to Christians throughout the region and to celebrate the contributions they make to their communities</p><p><br>The Archbishop of Canterbury made an official visit to Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Territories in 2017, the primary purpose of which was to affirm the Christian community in the Holy Land, to identify and explore challenges relating to religious freedom and to give encouragement to St. George’s Cathedral in Jerusalem. The Archbishop also met with Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian politicians during his visit</p><p><br>During the November parliamentary recess I joined a small group of MPs on a regional visit to see for myself the challenges faced by the Christian community in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. We visited a number of projects that are funded or supported by the Anglican Church, including hospitals and schools. Speaking with the different communities gave a helpful perspective on the significant challenges to the daily lives and movements of people.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 22/11/2018 16:11:52 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1011526

	registered interest
	date	21/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christ Church College
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Right Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what support is being provided to the dean of Christ Church college Oxford in his dispute with the college and cathedral authorities.
	tabling member constituency	Henley
	tabling member printed	John Howell
	uin	194169
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/11/2018 answer text <p>Christ Church is a complex institution and, uniquely in the Church of England, the Dean is also the head of an Oxford college. The complaint against the Dean is an internal matter for the college, and neither the Church Commissioners nor the wider Church of England have any role in that process. The Bishop of Oxford remains in close contact with the Dean and is monitoring the situation closely.</p><p>A statement made to the Oxford Diocesan Synod by the Bishop of Oxford can be read here: <a href="https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.oxford.anglican.org%2Fdiocesan-synod-statement-dean-of-oxford-martyn-percy%2F&amp;data=02%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7C01ffffa8bf48458a3c9008d653abccbc%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C636788394678291856&amp;sdata=v2C5Jpb%2FhFT4NtBXBAD1safzCWsMYDrGihGiJQklAPM%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.oxford.anglican.org/diocesan-synod-statement-dean-of-oxford-martyn-percy/</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 26/11/2018 16:32:22 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1606 label Biography information for John Howell

1013179

	registered interest
	date	23/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Charitable Donations
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment the Church Commissioners have made of trends in the level of demand for charitable donations since 2010.
	tabling member constituency	Edinburgh North and Leith
	tabling member printed	Deidre Brock
	uin	195133
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/11/2018 answer text <p>The underlying financial health of the Church of England’s parishes is a testament to the generosity of the commitment of congregations and local communities across the country. The most recent assessment of Church of England parish finances relate to 2016 when total giving to the 12,400 parishes was £3million more than the previous year. Between 2010 and 2016 total giving increased by 8.5%.</p><p /> <p>The figures also show that in 2016 Church of England parishes donated £46 million to supporting other charities working in the UK around the world, from foodbanks and local children's charities to international aid appeals.</p><p /> <p>Detailed figures for giving and charitable donations can be found in the 2016 Parish Finances Statistics here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2018-10/2016ParishFinanceStatistics.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2018-10/2016ParishFinanceStatistics.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 27/11/2018 17:17:27 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4417 label Biography information for Deidre Brock

1013180

	registered interest
	date	23/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Repairs and Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what support the Church Commissioners receive from Her Majesty's Government to enable them to maintain (a) redundant and (b) under-utilised churches.
	tabling member constituency	Edinburgh North and Leith
	tabling member printed	Deidre Brock
	uin	195134
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/11/2018 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners receive no direct Government support for maintaining redundant or under-utilised churches.</p><p> </p><p>The Church Commissioners and DCMS provide financial support for the Churches Conservation Trust, which cares for redundant churches of special architectural significance, and for which no suitable alternative use can be found. The Grants to the Churches Conservation Trust Order 2016, (which can be found here: <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2016/9780111142738" target="_blank">https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2016/9780111142738</a>) sets out the basis of Government funding from 1<sup>st</sup> April 2016 to 31<sup>st</sup> March 2020.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 27/11/2018 17:19:29 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4417 label Biography information for Deidre Brock

1015278

	registered interest
	date	27/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Gambling
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to tackle problem gambling.
	tabling member constituency	Walsall North
	tabling member printed	Eddie Hughes
	uin	907931
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2018 answer text <p>In 2017 the Church of England’s General Synod passed a unanimous motion calling on Government to reduce the stakes on fixed-odds betting terminals to £2.00. This is an issue on which bishops, most notably the Bishop of St Albans, have spoken frequently on and campaigned for. The Church has therefore welcomed the Government’s announcement of the reduction in stakes, and the decision to implement the change in April 2019, as well as the increase in Remote Gaming Duty. The Bishop of St Albans continues to spearhead the Church’s activity in this area and has recently raised in the House of Lords the high quantity of gambling advertisements, increases in child gambling, the voluntary levy paid by gambling firms, and the socio-economic cost to society of problem gambling.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/11/2018 16:15:50 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4635 label Biography information for Eddie Hughes

1016120

	registered interest
	date	28/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Community Development
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent steps the Church of England has taken at parish level to support the needs of local communities.
	tabling member constituency	Gillingham and Rainham
	tabling member printed	Rehman Chishti
	uin	907925
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2018 answer text <p>This year the Church of England surveyed its 16,000 parish churches about their involvement in social action and local community projects. Of the 13,000 churches that responded the survey revealed that 80% were involved in providing services for the benefit of their local communities, either standalone or in partnership with others. These 33,000 projects included debt counselling, lunch clubs, language classes, food banks, children’s clubs, community cafes, holiday and breakfast clubs and night shelters.</p><p>There are many good examples of work in the Rochester Diocese, 11 of the 12 Church of England churches within the Gillingham deanery (which covers the Gillingham and Rainham constituency) are involved in providing on average at least 4 different projects to support the wider local community.</p><p>The areas in which the churches in Gillingham deanery are engaging is as follows:</p><ul><li>10 churches provide or support a Foodbank</li><li>8 churches operate a parent/carer and toddler group</li><li>7 churches operate a night shelter or other homeless provision</li><li>6 churches provide pastoral provision for wider community through operating street pastors groups, counselling/support, tackling loneliness projects</li><li>5 churches operate Youth projects (for the wider community)</li><li>4 churches provide a Lunch club or drop in service.</li></ul> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 29/11/2018 16:16:39 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	3987 label Biography information for Rehman Chishti

1017355

	registered interest
	date	29/11/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christ Church College
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Rt. Hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, with reference to her oral contribution of 29 November, Official Report, what status the suspension of the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, from his role as Dean of the Anglican cathedral has as a result of the complaint being an internal matter for the college and neither the Church Commissioners nor the wider Church of England has any role in that process.
	tabling member constituency	Henley
	tabling member printed	John Howell
	uin	197459
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2018 answer text <p>Christ Church Oxford is a joint foundation comprising both College and Cathedral. The post of Dean being indivisible, the different aspects of his or her duties cannot be separated. Under the statutes of Christ Church, where a complaint is referred to a Tribunal, the Senior ex-Censor may choose to suspend the Dean from his or her duties without loss of salary.</p><p>The statutes of Christ Church Oxford may be read here: <a href="https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.chch.ox.ac.uk%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2FStatutesofChristChurchOxford.27.4.16.pdf&amp;data=02%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7Cc460da4ba1d44ed1bf2108d6591c835f%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C636794376331365011&amp;sdata=fnFtCHdfidpqBVelc9bCx0%2FbOMF2v%2BM5V93H0gq0b9s%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/StatutesofChristChurchOxford.27.4.16.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 05/12/2018 11:38:33 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1606 label Biography information for John Howell

1020362

	registered interest
	date	05/12/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christ Church Cathedral Oxford and Christ Church College
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Right Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what is the process for the legal separation of Christ Church Cathedral Oxford and the college of Christ Church.
	tabling member constituency	Henley
	tabling member printed	John Howell
	uin	199380
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/12/2018 answer text <p>The institution of Christ Church was founded as both a cathedral of the Diocese of Oxford and as a college of the University in 1546. The Statutes then conferred were revised under the 1867 Christ Church (Oxford) Act and later modified by successive Commissions in 1882 and 1926, and by various Orders of Her Majesty in Council, with major revisions in 1963 and in 2011.</p><p> </p><p>An Act of Parliament or a Measure would be required to legally separate Christ Church Cathedral Oxford and the college of Christ Church. There is no move to legally separate College and Cathedral.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 10/12/2018 16:52:19 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1606 label Biography information for John Howell

1020364

	registered interest
	date	05/12/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christ Church College
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Right Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether the employment rights of the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, are the same as those of a Dean of a stand-alone Anglican cathedral.
	tabling member constituency	Henley
	tabling member printed	John Howell
	uin	199381
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/12/2018 answer text <p>Christ Church Oxford is unique. The Dean of Christ Church is not subject to the same terms of service as deans of other cathedrals within the Church of England. The terms of service of the dean and the residentiary canons of the cathedral are set out in the Statues of Christ Church.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 10/12/2018 16:52:51 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1606 label Biography information for John Howell

1022861

	registered interest
	date	10/12/2018
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christians against Poverty
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Right Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of contributions to churches helping run Christians Against Poverty Centres in the 2018-19 financial year.
	tabling member constituency	East Londonderry
	tabling member printed	Mr Gregory Campbell
	uin	200571
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/12/2018 answer text <p>Christians Against Poverty (CAP) is a charity independent of the Church of England. CAP run over 1,000 debt advice centres across the country supporting individuals and families in need. The work of CAP has recently been evaluated by the LSE and its report concluded that the benefit of CAP's work to society was over £31.5million per year, in return for an annual expenditure of £8.7 million.</p><p> </p><p>More information about the report can be found here: <a href="https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcapuk.org%2Fconnect%2Fpolicy-and-government%2Fnever-just-a-number&amp;data=02%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7C34f7d4a8394741b18ed008d66111b7ea%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C636803126060672730&amp;sdata=v4q25FzDvzbjizPT%2FuhLGbCUyvCLqMSJB5zXx8HFftM%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://capuk.org/connect/policy-and-government/never-just-a-number</a></p><p> </p><p>The parishes of the Church of England often partner with organisations such as Christians Against Poverty to provide a range of services to support their local communities. The Church of England recently surveyed its parishes and discovered that 80% of congregations are involved in one or more forms of social action. Data gathered from 13,000 churches shows that the biggest area of work is in food banks - with 60%, or nearly 8,000 churches - involved in either running or supporting food banks through volunteers, donations and providing venues.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 13/12/2018 15:50:17 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	1409 label Biography information for Mr Gregory Campbell