Ecclesiastical exemption
Works to places of worship for exempt religious denominations may require planning permission, but under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, they are exempt from listed building and conservation area consent.
Details of the exemption are set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 and in the Ecclesiastical Exemption (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (England) Order 2010. Note, this order only applies to England.
The exemption applies to places of worship, their contents and curtilage, but not to residences. More detailed definitions are provided for Church of England Cathedrals.
Exempt works might include, repairs, alterations, extensions or partial demolition.
The exemption applies to recognised religious bodies that can demonstrate to the Secretary of State for the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) that they have procedures in place that provide controls over works to listed buildings and to unlisted buildings in conservation areas that are equal to normal listed building and conservation area controls. DCMS consult Historic England when considering applications.
Guidance is set out by DCMS in The Operation of the Ecclesiastical Exemption and related planning matters for places of worship in England 2010, which states that:
‘Denominational systems of control need to be open and transparent. The systems should provide similar levels of consultation and engagement with local communities, and with the statutory consultees - planning authorities, Historic England and the national amenity societies - as is required in relation to the secular control system and they must comply with the provisions of the Code of Practice’ (the Code of Practice is Annex A to the guidance).
At present, the exempt denominations in England are:
- The Baptist Union of Great Britain.
- The Church of England.
- The Methodist Church.
- The Roman Catholic Church.
- The United Reformed Church.
NB Under Section 61 (8) of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, ecclesiastical buildings cannot be scheduled monuments and so do not require scheduled monument consent.
[edit] Find out more
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
- Chancel repair liability.
- Church Heritage Record.
- Conservation area.
- Historic England.
- Listed buildings.
- Manse.
- Planning permission.
- Scheduled monuments.
- Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings.
[edit] External references
IHBC NewsBlog
IHBC’s HESPR pick: Heritage Impact Assessments sought for Northampton
The HESPR top pick for this week features a call for three Heritage Impact Assessments in Northampton, closing 16/09.
England’s Heritage Open Days celebrates 25 years!
England’s Heritage Open Days celebrates it’s 25th year with 25 new places opening their doors. Take advantage of a huge range of regular and one-off opportunities!
The incredible list of London Underground stations that never opened
You may think there are quite a few London Underground stations, and you’d be right as there are 270 stations in total on the network, yet there could have been many many more yet there are so many that never saw the light of day.
Famous Bowie Bandstand in Bromley wins listed status
Known to almost everyone as the Bowie Bandstand, The Bromley Times applauds its recent listing as ‘it should be protected forever’.
Out of Context and from ‘Building Services’: Lighting standards, World Heritage, and Bath
The city of Bath is well known for its stunning architecture and beautiful stone, but few might consider the everyday details like lighting.
Company fined £20,000 for unauthorised work on listed building
A property company has been ordered to pay £25,000 following unauthorised work on a listed building following a prosecution by Cotswold District Council.
New guidance on land sensitivity assessment from Natural England
New guidance from Natural England has been published on how to create a landscape sensitivity assessment to inform decisions on the planning and management of land use change which influence spatial planning.
Construction workers given Moodbeam devices to wear for mental health monitoring
Civil contractor Spencer Group is giving staff wearable devices that allow them to log their mood and monitor their emotional wellbeing.
The system for recognising EU qualified architects in the UK if there is no Brexit deal
The (MRPQ) will no longer apply if there’s a no-deal Brexit, and the UK government will maintain a system of recognition for architects with an approved qualification from an European Economic Area (EEA) state or Switzerland.