Information on The Churches Preservation Trust

The Churches Preservation Trust

All Saints Church, Kedleston, Derbyshire

A Historic Tour of The Churches Preservation Trust

St John the Baptist, Inglesham, Wiltshire

The Churches Preservation Trust

The Churches Conservation Trust was set up to care for Church of England churches no longer needed for parish use. All our churches are architecturally or historically important with most Grade I or Grade II.

Set up in 1969, we now have over 330 wonderful churches. We warmly welcome visitors, whether individuals or groups.

Many of our churches are open daily, some with custodians, but others, sadly, would be at too high a risk from theft or vandalism so we have a keyholder nearby to let you in.

Some of our churches host events such as concerts, talks, exhibitions and flower festivals. For details of major events, click on Special Events. Many of the churches also organise occasional services which are advertised locally.

The Churches Conservation Trust (formerly The Redundant Churches Fund), a registered charity, receives its major funding from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and from the Church Commissioners but always welcomes donations to help it preserve and maintain its large estate, and to make our churches pleasing places to visit.

When we take over a church, our aim is to get the building and its contents into a sound condition as speedily as possible. We are committed to the principles of conservative repair primarily because they are the best for the buildings but also because they are sustainable as well as cost-effective. We place great emphasis on maintenance - clearing gutters, unblocking drains, replacing slipped slates - because money spent on this helps prevent more serious (and costly) problems.

When undertaking major repairs, we usually have to close temporarily churches for reasons of public safety. Where this is the case, it will be clearly marked on the entry in the Church Gazetteer. (Extremely rarely, a church will have to be closed with no notice for emergency repairs.) For safety reasons we do not allow public access to towers.

Trust churches are all very special in their own ways and only come to us after a rigorous process of vetting and assessment. The initial approach to make a church redundant starts with local people but the final decision is made by the Church Commissioners acting on expert advice.

Thank you for considering making a donation. Any contribution will be greatly valued.

Should you wish to make a donation please make your cheque payable to should be made payable to The Churches Conservation Trust and sent to the address below - thank you.

More information?
Contact:
The Director
The Churches Conservation Trust
1 West Smithfield
London
EC1A 9EE
Web: www.visitchurches.org.uk

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