Report by Duncan Williams for Pulman's Weekly News
The Diocese of Exeter is welcoming £2.3 million in funding for eight Devon churches to carry out essential repairs, safeguard historic buildings and keep them serving their local communities.
The grants have been awarded through Historic England’s Places of Worship Renewal Fund, launched in May following the closure of the long-running Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. More than £13 million has been awarded to Church of England churches through the new fund.
The successful churches in the Diocese of Exeter are St Mary’s, Brixham; Holy Trinity, Milton Damerel; St John’s, Paignton; St Matthias, Plymouth; St Stephen’s, Putford; St Swithun’s, Pyworthy; St Mary’s, Tamerton Foliot; and All Saints, Torre.
The funding will support essential building repairs and conservation work, including roof repairs, stonework restoration and measures to address water ingress.
Louise Brown, Church Buildings Support Officer for the Diocese of Exeter, said the awards recognised the dedication of local congregations and volunteers working to preserve their churches.
“This is fantastic news for these eight churches and their communities.
“This money is a real lifeline, enabling essential repairs to take place.
“At a parish level, volunteers work tirelessly to look after their church buildings, and the people in these parishes put significant effort into their grant applications.
“Their success is a recognition that these buildings are at the very heart of our communities.”
Plymouth church secures £692,000
Among the largest awards is £692,077 for St Matthias Church in Plymouth, which has a particular focus on serving students and young adults.
The grant will enable essential repairs to the roof and stonework of its Victorian building. The church recently celebrated its 10th anniversary as a Church of England Resource Church.
Two churches in the Bradworthy Mission Community, St Stephen’s in Putford and Holy Trinity in Milton Damerel, have secured grants totalling £712,735.
The money will fund roof repairs and the restoration of interior plasterwork, helping protect the buildings and ensure they remain available to their communities.
Rev’d Mark James, Team Rector of Bradworthy Mission Community, said the churches offered a place of belonging beyond regular Sunday worship.
“The Church is its people, and these buildings shelter our shared life, giving us somewhere to gather before God with all that we are and all that we carry.
“Many who enter may never join a Sunday congregation, yet their connection to this place can be deeply meaningful, rooted in family memories or in the simple reassurance of knowing there is somewhere they can come.
“As custodians, ours is to care for what has been entrusted to us while asking where God is guiding and calling us next, ensuring that these places are structurally sound and ready to receive those who will need them in an ever more volatile world. We cannot know the stories they will bring, but we can prepare a place for them, just as others prepared a place for us.”
Paignton church to tackle persistent leaks
St John’s Church in Paignton will receive £175,186 towards essential repairs to its Grade I listed building, which has been a place of worship for around 900 years.
The award comes alongside separate funding secured from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Rev’d Laura McAdam, the church’s Team Vicar, said the latest grant would help protect the building while supporting plans to expand its community use.
“This generous grant allows us to secure the future of our Grade I listed building, a site that has held 900 years of worship.
“The community of Paignton fully deserves this investment in its heritage and finally fixing persistent leaks and water ingress allows us to take the first step in safeguarding the building, as part of a wider vision of community use particularly by SEND families and groups who support our most vulnerable parishioners.”
The work will address long-standing problems with leaks and water entering the building. St John’s already hosts events for families with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and the repairs will support its wider ambitions to welcome and serve more people.
Diocese continues to support parishes
The other successful churches are St Mary’s in Brixham, St Swithun’s in Pyworthy, St Mary’s in Tamerton Foliot and All Saints in Torre.
The awards will help the eight parishes meet the substantial costs of maintaining historic places of worship, which often provide much more than a venue for Sunday services. They can also host community activities, family gatherings and local events, while preserving buildings that form an important part of Devon’s heritage.
However, the Diocese of Exeter has acknowledged that many other churches across the county still face significant repair bills. The closure of the previous VAT reclaim grant scheme has added to the financial pressures on parishes maintaining historic buildings.
The Diocese says it will continue to help churches identify funding opportunities, access grants and prepare applications, while working with colleagues nationally to campaign for better support.
Ms Brown said: “While this is a positive story for these eight churches, we acknowledge that there are many more churches in need of funding for repairs – and that every one of Devon’s churches has been impacted by the loss of the VAT reclaim grant scheme.
“We continue to work with parishes to support them in carrying out repairs and accessing grant funding, and to work with colleagues across the country to campaign for better access to funding for our historic churches,” she said.
The latest awards provide a significant boost for the eight successful churches. The Diocese of Exeter’s continuing work with parishes will remain important in helping protect the county’s wider network of historic places of worship for future generations.
( Photos: Diocese of Exeter 📸 )