Local councils giving grants for church property for community benefit

LATEST: Important update 31 October 2023

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023. We will post a link to the text of the Act as soon as one is available. References below to the ‘Bill’ refer to what is now the Act.

The Act contained a Government amendment which it is hoped will address the confusion in the law regarding parish council’s having the power to fund church property. This does not apply to Community Councils. For the government amendment, read on; for the background to the issue, scroll down a bit.

Update 27 November: We understand that the relevant provision in the Act will come into force on 26 December (see https://historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/planning/planning-bulletin-nov23/)

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How the matter ended up (for background to the issue, see below)

The Government tabled its own amendment (no. 60), which was passed on 14 July 2023 (for debate and result, see here, starting with speakers against the amendment, and scroll down for result). This will address the confusion in the law regarding parish council’s having the power to fund church property – for details see below. On 21 September 2023 it was reported that the Government amendment has cleared its final hurdle in the Lords.

This is very good news. The only disappointment is that it applies to England only, not to Wales, as the Government regards this as a devolved matter.

Here is the letter from the minister to peers explaining the amendment. The text of the amendment and the Government’s explanatory text are below.

Text of Government amendment

After Clause 78

BARONESS SCOTT OF BYBROOK

After Clause 78, insert the following new Clause—

“Powers of parish councils

After section 19 of the Local Government Act 1894 (provisions as to small parishes), insert—

“19A Powers under other enactments

(1) Nothing in this Part affects any powers, duties or liabilities conferred on a parish council by or under any other enactment (whenever passed or made).

(2) This section does not apply in relation to community councils (see section 179(4) of the Local Government Act 1972).””

Member’s explanatory statement

This amendment inserts a new section into the Local Government Act 1894 to clarify that the powers conferred on parish councils under Part 1 of that Act do not affect any powers, duties or liabilities of parish councils conferred by or under any other enactment (whenever passed or made).

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Background to the issue, which for England will be resolved by the above amendment.

Quick Briefings

Debate in the House of Lords

The matter was debated in the House of Lords Committee stage on Wednesday 24 May. The record of the debate is here (Hansard, column 125GC, just before 5.00pm). The Government assured the House that ‘we in the department are considering this issue carefully and will reflect on the comments made during this debate’ and ‘have had many talks with the National Association of Local Councils and interested churches, and we will continue to do so as we move to Report’.

The next opportunity for the matter to be debated will be at Report Stage. Ideally, the Government would bring forward its own amendment to clarify the law.

The issue

Over the years, many Parish Councils (PCs) and other Local Councils in England and Wales have given discretionary grants to church buildings, church halls, graveyards and other church property, of all denominations, to help these buildings and other property provide benefit to the community. We know from the important 2021 House of Good report that these buildings provide a great deal of community benefit.

But it is now widely suggested that on the basis of s.8(1)(i) of the Local Government Act 1894, these bodies do not have the power to make such grants.

Here is a one-page summary document which explains the problem.

Evidence there is a real problem

1. Recent cases of refusal to provide financial assistance.

2. Recent cases of refusing grants to help maintain open churchyards.

3. The influential National Association of Local Councils (NALC) argues in its 2018 briefing note that the 1894 prohibition does stand, and many local councils follow this advice. The situation is similar in Wales with the equivalent One Voice Wales.

4. See at the foot of this page for a revealing case study.

Support for change to the law

Clarification to the law is supported by:

1. The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) – see page 11 of NALC briefing to peers

2. The equivalent body in Wales (One Voice Wales)

3. The Society of Local Council Clerks HRBA letter to Government on support for change

3. Major denominations including the Church of England, the Catholic Church in England and Wales,  the Methodist Church, the Church in Wales.

4. The Commission set up to consider the sustainability of more than 600 ancient churches in Norfolk.

Obtaining clarification to the law

Here is a full but very readable account of the legal issues, produced by CLAS. The Government accepts it cannot simply issue an opinion on the matter: see page 5 of this Government letter and our response

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill (LURB) provides an opportunity to clarify the law. This is supported by all the bodies listed in the previous section, and by HRBA.

The Bishop of Bristol proposed an amendment (may open very slowly – or try right clicking) to LURB to the House of Lords, to deal with the relevant clause in the 1894 Act. This was debated on 24 May 2023.  The record of the debate will be published shortly; we believe the Government committed to consider the matter. The next opportunity for the matter to be debated will be at Report Stage.

The Chair of the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) had similarly proposed an earlier amendment. The NALC amendment was discussed on 15 March – see our amendments page (frozen mid 2023).

Case study – Norton Lindsey Parish Council

In our research we came across the case of Norton Lindsey Parish Council (populn: c. 325), in the County of Warwickshire.

For many years the Parish Council has been making a grant towards the clock, the church meeting room, and the churchyard, typically totalling around £600 per year.

However, on 11th February 2020 the PC was informed that this was illegal. It minuted a decision to ‘campaign for a change in the law’ and set up a working party to research the issue.

The working party produced one of the most interesting documents we have encountered on this topic   – a beautifully-produced Discussion Paper in the form of a booklet of some thirty pages, illustrated with pictures of the church and churchyard . We highly recommend it.

The booklet has a thorough discussion of the issues (including transcripts of emails discussing various legal points) and also brings home the reality on the ground of the uncertainty in the law, when the Parish Council of a small village is told that the regular grants they have been giving are illegal.

There is a happy ending. As a result of this work, on 12 January 2021 the Parish Council decided to proceed with the grants, writing a most careful minute (pages 2-3) to justify the decision. This included an instruction to the clerk to review every year whether a final legal determination of the law has been made.

The quality of this work augurs well for local democracy.

But we feel strongly that it shouldn’t be like this. The law needs to be clarified so that Parish Councils can make grants on the basis of their public benefit, not of the religious affiliation of the organisation which happens to own the property concerned. The problem is specific and well-understood, and the solution simple – a change to the 1894 Act.

This would be good news for Norton Lindsey, and many, many other Parish Councils.

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