The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Andy Burnham, announced (Friday 12 December) that English Heritage, the Government's lead adviser on the historic environment, is making available £1.5 million to part-fund 30 Support Officers to help congregations of all faiths manage and maintain their historic places of worship.
Speaking to an audience of Anglican, Catholic, Methodist and Jewish leaders at St Clement's Church, Ordsall in Salford, Andy Burnham said: "I have always believed that our historic places of worship are unique in what they offer, representing at the same time the finest of the country's built heritage, and the heritage of ordinary people in every community. Even today, our places of worship continue to pull their local communities together, providing the landmarks by which we navigate, and helping us in times of need or celebration.
"This excellent scheme is about helping these landmarks to survive, sowing expertise where it is needed among those that care for these buildings. I am confident that we will see real benefits with congregations better able to look after these buildings, ensuring they are better equipped to meet future challenges, and able to fulfil their potential within local communities. The Support Officers scheme will have a major impact on the preservation and appropriate use of our magnificent places of worship."
Janet Gough, Director of Cathedral and Church Buildings for the Church of England, said: "This is a welcome offer from English Heritage. The Church of England is a Christian presence in every community and these Support Officers will help congregations to maintain and improve their buildings not only as centres of worship but also as centres of community and voluntary activities, just as they have been for many centuries. All dioceses need to do now is decide what sort of person they need, talk to English Heritage, and start recruiting."
The Support Officers scheme is the most radical offer English Heritage has ever made to places of worship because it is flexible, based on a partnership agreement and is quite unlike any other grants English Heritage offers. It is the boldest initiative in a generation and an entirely new approach to supporting the people who are sustaining the historic environment.
The Support Officers scheme is part of English Heritage's on-going Inspired! campaign launched in 2006 to help struggling congregations to help themselves. English Heritage will cover 50% of the total costs of a Support Officer post for three years. It will encourage the professional development of individual Support Officers and jointly agree objectives with the partner organisation but will have no involvement in their day-to-day work. It is hoped that the Support Officer will demonstrate their value in three years and that the post will then become a full-time member of the partner organisation's staff.
This has happened in the case of Tim Hatton, Historic Church Buildings Officer in the Church of England diocese of Manchester, whose work was part-funded by English Heritage from the inception of the post in 2003 to 2007.
The Bishop of Manchester, the Rt Revd. Nigel McCulloch, said: "Tim has been invaluable in helping us understand the historic and architectural importance of the churches in our care and what we can achieve to make them fit for worship and community use in the 21st century. He works with parishes to help them access funding for heritage repairs and signposts them to best practice. Most importantly, he helps parishes to grasp new possibilities for their church building and to deal with sometimes difficult decisions."
Tim Hatton, one of seven people who have piloted the Scheme around the country, said: "In this role I have been able to combine my skills of engineering project management and a love of historic buildings to serve the church and community. Through the post the diocese has been able to think strategically about church buildings and build new capacity to help clergy and Church Wardens in the care and development of their churches. The diocese has developed a multi-disciplinary approach able to make a real difference where it's needed."
Support Officers must have a knowledge of historic building conservation principles and a demonstrable interest in England's historic places of worship, but detailed knowledge of ecclesiastical architecture is not essential. They should be excellent communicators, have problem-solving skills, and be able to empathise with the purposes of the relevant faith group.
Diocese or other groups interested in applying for a Support Officer post should contact Nick Chapple, Policy Officer for Places of Worship, nick.chapple@english-heritage.org.uk 020 7973 3267.
Individuals interested in becoming Support Officers should also contact Nick Chapple as above.
Support Officers Course
A one-day training course exploring the various aspects of the Support Officer role, relevant to organisations considering appointing one and to prospective Support Officers, is being run on 13th February, 2009 by the Oxford University Department for Continuing Education in partnership with English Heritage. See link on http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/Inspired
For more information on the English Heritage Support Officer scheme and its Inspired! campaign, visit http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/Inspired
