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<p>Historic England works closely with faith communities on the management of historic
places of worship.</p><p>When a place of worship is no longer required for regular
worship it can still make a valuable contribution to the wider community; Historic
England works with faith communities to develop a sustainable future when they are
not used actively for worship, retaining as much of their special historical and architectural
significance as possible. Only in a small minority of cases do places of worship have
to close. Historic England also offers bespoke advice to those who manage places of
worship on how to address repairs.</p><p>In 2016, the Taylor Review: Sustainability
of English Churches and Cathedrals was commissioned to examine the funding and sustainability
of listed Church of England churches. The Review considered that a more strategic
approach was needed to ensure than the previous large investments of public money
were protected by timely maintenance and repair of these buildings. Consequently,
the DCMS-funded Taylor Review Pilot was commissioned to test some recommendations
made in the Review, pairing advice and support from building conservation and community
development experts with targeted grant funding for maintenance and minor repairs.
The evaluation, which was published in October 2020, demonstrated the impact of this
project on historic places of worship in the pilot areas, with just over £1m of grant
funding for repairs allocated almost equally between both areas to 136 applicants.</p><p>The
Government has set out its vision and strategy to protect the historic environment,
including England’s places of worship, in the 2017 Heritage Statement. Any further
financial support is subject to the Spending Review, which is due to conclude later
this month.</p><p> </p>
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