When people stop going to church, it seems that it is the building that loses out. As the dictates of modern society state that nothing can simply "be" without a reason, some are getting demolished. According to Save British Heritage, sixty churches were placed on its Buildings at Risk list this year. The number is the highest added in one year since the register was started 20 years ago.
Others are being sold to more popular religions. A disused Methodist chapel in Clitheroe on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales is destined to become a mosque for the town’s 300 Muslims. Most, however, are being put to uses that would send shivers down the God-fearing spines of past traditionalists. Gyms, flats, clubs, cafes, warehouses, circus schools... In Cheltenham, 19th-century St James’s is now just one of the chain of Zizzi Italian restaurants.
Anglican Churches
Many committed Anglicans, such as cultural commentator, Sir Roy Strong, are in favour of converting the rapidly emptying buildings. “It’s unreal for many of these churches to continue,” he says in A Little History of the English Country Church (Jonathan Cape, 2007). “They have these so-called untouchable brown wooden pews. But why not rip them out and burn them?”
But while Strong goes on to advocate giving the building over to the use of the community, the Church of England itself seems happy for them to fall into private hands. "There have been a number of successful and sympathetic conversions of and uses for redundant church buildings, about 1,500 in total from the Church of England," says its website. "The number in any year is stable at about 20 to 25. We welcome proposals for new uses and are happy to discuss your queries."
New Uses for Old Churches
According to English Heritage, almost a thousand UK churches have been deconsecrated since 1969. Each year around 30 churches are made redundant – formally closed for worship under Church legislation (the Pastoral Measure 1983). Each diocese (the Church of England territorial unit roughly equivalent to a county) is responsible for finding new uses for redundant churches in its area.
"Since 1972 the Commissioners have completed 634 pastoral schemes to enable surplus churchyard or burial ground to be used for some other purpose," says MP for Middlesborough and representative of the Church Commissioners, Stuart Bell. "Very few of these cases have involved sale for development."
For those with an eye on a holy home, further problems arise in the form of covenants – included when the property is disposed of. These, according to the Church of England's Guidance from the Church of England for purchasers and lessees, will "ensure the property is only used for authorised purposes, protect it from any unauthorised alterations or demolition", and, most importantly, "reassure local people and enable public access to tend or visit any graves at agreed times protect against disturbance of any human remains, tombstones, monuments or memorials".
Methodist Chapels
Methodist churches are often sold without covenants and, given their usually smaller size, are more favoured for private conversions. The numbers in use have fallen from 14,000 in 1932 to 6,000, writes Ruth Gledhill in The Times ("Thousands of churches face closure in ten years," February 10, 2007) and they're currently closing at the rate of 100 a year.
But, for the potential developer, it's still no easy task. Church conversions can be hideously expensive and bureaucratic. Which is perhaps a blessing for those who believe in the innate sanctity of a church and welcome their spiritual symbolism, despite no longer following the religion that built them.
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