Published by the Historic Religious Buildings Alliance (HRBA) in collaboration with the Diocese of Hereford Available for FREE download from hrballiance.org.uk hereford.anglican.org CROSSING THE THRESHOLD A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO DEVELOPING YOUR PLACE OF WORSHIP FOR WIDER COMMUNITY USE AND MANAGING A SUCCESSFUL BUILDING PROJECT Written by Becky Payne, with substantial This is an updated and expanded edition of the Diocese of Hereford’s 2013 toolkit entitled contributions from: ‘Crossing the Threshold’ (first published 2009). Wendy Coombey, Community Partnership Copyright the various authors, 2017. and Funding Officer, Diocese of Hereford This work is issued under a Creative Commons license. In brief, you may freely copy, redistribute www.hereford.anglican.org and change the material in any reasonable manner for any non-commercial purpose, provided Stephanie Norris, Partner, Purcell that you acknowledge the source and provide a link to the websites of the HRBA and the www.purcelluk.com Diocese of Hereford. If you change the material you must not suggest that we agree with the Eleanor Stead, Legacy and Funding Officer, changes, and you must distribute it under the same licence. (Creative Commons Attribution- National Stewardship Team, Church of NonCommercial-ShareAlike Licence.) England www.parishresources.org.uk The financial assistance of the following organisation in the creation of this work is gratefully Nicolas Jenni, National Procurement Officer, acknowledged: National Stewardship Team, Church of Allchurches Trust is one of the UK’s largest charitable trusts. We give grants to churches, England www.parishbuying.org.uk schools and other charities working at the heart of local community life so that they can HRBA address: Clutha House, directly help those most in need. In 2016, we gave a total of £13.2 million to projects all over the 10 Storey’s Gate, London, SW1P 3AY. UK and Eire, particularly in deprived areas. We helped to restore and facilitate wider community Email: [email protected] ; use of churches and cathedrals of all denominations and we supported churches and charities website: www.hrballiance.org.uk addressing poverty, isolation, homelessness, youth unemployment and prisoner rehabilitation. Our money comes from our ownership of the Ecclesiastical Insurance Group, which grants Diocese of Hereford address: Hereford a significant proportion of its profits to Allchurches so that we can donate this money Diocese, Diocesan Office, Units 8 and 9 independently to good causes, helping to change people’s lives for the better. The Business Quarter, Ludlow Eco Park, www.allchurches.co.uk Sheet Road, Shropshire, SY8 1FD Email: [email protected] ; The work was produced by the HRBA in collaboration with the Diocese of Hereford and assisted website: www.hereford.anglican.org by ChurchCare (the Cathedral and Church Buildings Division of the Archbishops’ Council), National Stewardship Team, Church of England, Purcell and the National Churches Trust. 3 WELCOME 4 CHAPTER 10 180 Huw Edwards, Broadcaster and Journalist and RAISING THE FUNDS Vice President of the National Churches Trust will show you how to develop a fundraising strategy CONTENTS which is a written plan that details your funding FOREWORD 5 objectives and how you are going to achieve them. Rt Revd Dr John Inge, Lead Bishop on Cathedral and Describes the different methods of raising money. Church Buildings, Church of England STAGE 2: LOOKING AT YOUR OPTIONS CHAPTER 11 199 CHAPTER 5 85 INTRODUCTION 6 IDENTIFYING THE RIGHT EXTERNAL FUNDERS Bringing Buildings Back into Mission by Becky Payne DEVELOPING YOUR IDEAS – OPTIONS helps you identify the funders most likely to fund your and Wendy Coombey APPRAISAL, FEASIBILITY STUDY, ARCHITECT’S particular project and how to manage the process of BRIEF AND THE DESIGN STAGES making applications. helps you to assess all the options and work out which STAGE 1: PREPARING THE GROUND CHAPTER 12 212 solution your Group feels provides the best solution and COMPLETING APPLICATIONS – CHAPTER 1 17 is the most feasible. It also offers guidance on writing Statements of Need and Significance and explains the SELLING YOUR PROJECT TO FUNDERS DEVELOPING YOUR VISION explains how to complete application forms in the most will help you develop your vision, after talking to your process of appointing an architect. effective manner. congregation and other current users of your church CHAPTER 6 118 building and reassessing your building. BALANCING THE NEED FOR CHANGE CHAPTER 13 222 MANAGING PROJECT CASH FLOW CHAPTER 2 30 WITH HERITAGE AND LITURGICAL provides guidance on how to manage your cash flow UNDERTAKING A COMMUNITY AUDIT AND CONSIDERATIONS – LEGALITIES AND THE CHURCH PLANNING PROCESS while the building works are in progress and also once CONSULTING WITH THE COMMUNITY your new activities are up and running. explains how to consult with your local community to helps you to design your building project while taking into account the heritage of your building and liturgical ensure that your project delivers something that will be CHAPTER 14 228 valued and useful. requirements. It also explains the permission process. MANAGING THE BUILDING WORKS ON SITE Although, most of the activities described in this chapter CHAPTER 3 49 STAGE 3: DELIVERING YOUR PROJECT will be carried out by your architect, it is important that DEVELOPING A TEAM AND ASSESSING CHAPTER 7 135 you understand what is happening as ultimately it will YOUR SKILLS AND ABILITIES PLANNING YOUR PROJECT be your responsibility. will help you set up your team, making sure you have all will help you develop a plan at the beginning of the the skills you need. It also highlights some of the areas CHAPTER 15 241 project, and then keep it up to date as the project where your policies will need to be agreed and recorded. develops, so that you always feel in control. THE FINAL STAGES – CLAIMING MONEY, CELEBRATING, IMPACT AND EVALUATION CHAPTER 4 63 CHAPTER 8 150 explains how to undertake an evaluation of your GOVERNANCE – CHOOSING THE RIGHT WRITING A BUSINESS PLAN ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE building project and what actions you can take to explains how to make a strong business case for your sustain the next stage of your project. will help you to decide on the right organisational project which will help you to access financial support. structure for your project that allows you to do what CHAPTER 16 255 you want to do and importantly to retain the right level CHAPTER 9 163 FURTHER INFORMATION of control over what happens within and to your church ENSURING YOUR PROJECT IS SUSTAINABLE Advice on where you can find more information on building. takes you through all the elements of a project that you all aspects of developing a community project and should consider to ensure your project is sustainable in the long term. managing a building project. BACK TO CONTENTS PAGE WELCOME The United Kingdom’s churches, chapels and It is testament to their commitment that so meeting houses are a unique part of our many church buildings continue to survive. national story. At the heart of communities ‘Crossing the Threshold’ is an invaluable in cities, towns and villages, they are a resource which will be of great use to anyone veritable treasure trove of architecture, undertaking major renovations and also for history and faith. congregations looking for new ways to place Although we hear much about declining their church or chapel at the heart of their numbers of people attending church services, local community. church buildings remain a tremendous With vision, planning and, of course, funding, national asset, much loved by the public. churches and chapels can find new ways of According to the results of a December 2016 being of service to people, thereby continuing ComRes poll on church heritage, more than to play a vital role in the life and well-being four in five Britons (83%) agree that the UK’s of local communities. churches are an important part of the UK’s They may be historic buildings. But churches heritage and history. 80% agree that churches and chapels can be part of our future, too. are important for society as they provide a space in which community activities can take place. Many places of worship are kept alive Huw Edwards, Broadcaster and Journalist by volunteers. Together with clergy and and Vice-President of the National professional advisors, they work tirelessly Churches Trust to ensure that places of worship are well maintained and secure for the future. WELCOME 5 BACK TO CONTENTS PAGE FOREWORD Church buildings are The report of the Church of England’s Church the door, to cross the threshold, holy places. That is to Buildings Review Group, which I chaired, was is the first challenge. The way to do that is say they are set apart to bear witness to the published in 2015. The report emphasised to have something inside that people want. sacred and to the life of faith, to a three-way that, in addition to their role as places of We need to work to have buildings which relationship between God, people and place. worship, our church buildings need to be facilitate relationships, buildings which Since the earliest days, church buildings have ‘sensitively combined with service to the enable: served as shrines and ‘way-markers’ in the community. The imaginative adaptation landscape, witness to the saving events of of church buildings for community use in • engagement Christian history, being a prophetic presence many areas is breathing new life into them’. • encounter in the midst of secular society and an Welcoming the community to make more use • being alongside eschatological sign of God’s future. of church buildings may, in many cases, be the • dialogue key to their continued survival. Church buildings are powerful signs and If they are effectively to serve their symbols in the landscapes and townscapes These buildings have an enormous impact on communities as well as being places of of our nation.