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Church bodies have previously warned that the end of the VAT refund scheme would make repairs significantly more expensive, while its replacement – the Places of Worship Renewal Fund – does not offer the same level of certainty for long‑term planning.
Emily Gee, the Church of England’s director for cathedral and church buildings, said the end of the VAT scheme had increased pressure on local fundraisers.
“We have been continuing to work with the wider sector and the government to see how that burden can be alleviated,” she said.
Grants for minor repairs and improvements were available from national church funds such as the Buildings for Mission programme.
“We look forward to hearing the details of the Government’s new £92m Places of Worship Renewal Fund, which will be open to the Church of England’s 12,500 listed church buildings,” she added.
“We encourage churches that might seek to make an application to be prepared for the opening of the grant scheme and keep an eye on website, which is administered by Historic England.”
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it supported listed places of worship through its heritage funding schemes.
The department added that the National Lottery is expected to have invested around £100m in places of worship between 2024-27.
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