What Is The Process For Closing A Church Building?

Because churches are at the centres of ever-changing communities, towns and villages, a building project can involve expansion, modification, restoration, and sometimes repurposing.

In some cases, where parishes are reorganised or joined together, there is an additional building that has become surplus to the requirements of the diocese and therefore would need to be closed as a church.

There is a code of practice that a diocese needs to follow with regard to the decision to close a building, and it is typically only fully closed as a church (as opposed to being reordered to meet the needs of the congregation) if there is no alternative.

In most cases, the building will continue to stand and ideally will be used for other community purposes.

The process can vary by denomination, but for Church of England buildings, the process begins with an application to the Church Commissioners, who will analyse the process and undertake a public consultation of any proposal to close the church and the next steps for the building itself.

This consultation, which involves both local and national stakeholders, takes at least six months but can take longer, during which time services are expected to continue as normal, unless there is permission from the Bishop to suspend services for safety reasons owing to the condition of the building.

If there are objections, then the Mission, Pastoral and Church Property Committee (MPCPC) will seek further comments, the views of the Bishop and decide whether the scheme should go ahead or not.

Once it is agreed, the final date will be marked with a service to commemorate the building, the parish and the memories associated with the building.

Following this, the building will typically be converted to an agreed suitable alternative use, subject to the conditions agreed by the MPCPC regarding acceptable modifications and the appropriate storage and removal of assets contained within the church.
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In other cases, it will be preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust or will be demolished.