Redundant church
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A redundant church, now referred to as a "closed church", is a church building that is no longer used for
Christian worship In Christianity, worship is the act of attributing reverent honour and homage to God. In the New Testament, various words are used to refer to the term worship. One is ("to worship") which means to bow down to God or kings. Throughout most ...
. The term most frequently refers to former
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
churches in the United Kingdom, but may also be used for disused churches in other countries. Reasons for redundancy include population movements, changing social patterns, merging of parishes, and decline in
church attendance Church attendance is a central religious practice for many Christians; some Christian denominations, such as the Catholic Church require church attendance on the Lord's Day (Sunday); the Westminster Confession of Faith is held by the Reformed Ch ...
(especially in the
Global North Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...
). Historically, redundant churches were often
demolished Demolition (also known as razing, cartage, and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down of buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a ...
or left to
ruin Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...
. Today, many are repurposed as community centres, museums or homes, and are demolished only if no alternative can be found.


Anglican buildings

Although church buildings fall into disuse around the world, the term "redundancy" was particularly used by the
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
, which had a Redundant Churches Division. As of 2008, it instead refers to such churches as "closed for regular public worship", and the Redundant Churches Division became the Closed Churches Division.Closed Churches
Church of England, November 2017
Church buildings in England may be declared redundant for a number of reasons, but it is primarily due to a reduction in the number of regular Sunday worshippers, which has steadily fallen since the late 1980s, to about 1.7m in 2008,Redundant churches: Pints in the pews
, ''The Economist'', 28 March 2002
and 1.11m in 2019 (before the covid pandemic in the UK distorted figures). Other reasons include the amalgamation of
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
es; or a preference for another building where two churches are in close proximity, for example at
Swaffham Prior Swaffham Prior is a small village in East Cambridgeshire, England. Lying 5 miles west of Newmarket, and two miles south west of Burwell, the village is often paired with its neighbour Swaffham Bulbeck, and are collectively referred to as 'Th ...
, Cambridgeshire. Population shift is another factor. For example, many redundant churches were formerly maintained in deserted or shrunken medieval villages (such as
Wharram Percy Wharram Percy is a deserted medieval village and former civil parish near Malton, North Yorkshire, on the western edge of the chalk Wolds of North Yorkshire, England. It is about south of Wharram-le-Street and is signposted from the Beverley ...
in
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
). The square mile
City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...
has only a few thousand permanent residents—far smaller than its historic population, as most workers now
commute Commute, commutation or commutative may refer to: * Commuting, the process of travelling between a place of residence and a place of work Mathematics * Commutative property, a property of a mathematical operation whose result is insensitive to th ...
from outside its boundaries—leaving many redundant churches there. About 20 to 25 Church of England churches are declared closed for regular public worship each year. They are demolished only as a last resort. Some active use is made of about half of the closed churches. 1795 were closed between 1969 and 2010, or about 11% of existing churches, with about 1/3
listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...
as Grade I or II. (Of these, only 514 were built later than 1989.) Only 20% were demolished, of which 75% were unlisted. The aim of the closure process is to find new uses for the structures, for which the
diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...
is responsible. Some closed churches remain
consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
for occasional use by the Church of England. Some are purchased by other denominations or faiths for regular use. Several charitable trusts preserve churches of architectural merit, such as the
Churches Conservation Trust The Churches Conservation Trust is a registered charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk in England. The charity cares for over 350 churches of architectural, cultural and historic significance, which have been transferred in ...
in England, and the
Friends of Friendless Churches Friends of Friendless Churches is a registered charity formed in 1957, active in England and Wales, which campaigns for and rescues redundant historic places of worship threatened by demolition, decay, or inappropriate conversion. As of April ...
in Wales (which also maintains a number of churches in England).
Historic Churches Scotland Historic Churches Scotland (formerly the Scottish Redundant Churches Trust) is a registered charity founded in 1996 which looks after Scottish churches which are of outstanding historic or architectural significance but are no longer used for r ...
cares for several former
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
church buildings.


Reuse

Depending on their listed status, many closed churches can be converted to other uses. Several are used as community and education centres—for example,
All Saints' Church, Bristol All Saints is a closed Anglican church in Corn Street, Bristol. For many years it was used as a Diocesan Education Centre but this closed in 2015. The building has been designated as a grade II* listed building. History The west end of the nav ...
and
All Saints Church, Harthill All Saints Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Harthill, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. As of 2010 the church is being converte ...
. In
Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
, Holy Trinity Church now serves as the town's
Guildhall A guildhall, also known as a "guild hall" or "guild house", is a historical building originally used for tax collecting by municipalities or merchants in Great Britain and the Low Countries. These buildings commonly become town halls and in som ...
, and St Michael's Church as a
heritage centre A heritage centre, center, or museum is a public facility – typically a museum, monument, visitor centre, or park – that is primarily dedicated to the presentation of historical and cultural information about a place and its people, and often ...
. St Peter's Church, Offord D'Arcy, managed by the Churches Conservation Trust, is used to host festivals, including a film festival. Others buildings are used in more unusual ways. Old St Ann's Church, Warrington is an
indoor climbing A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, usually used for indoor climbing, but sometimes located outdoors. Some are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used ...
centre (one of several churches used in this way). Others are art galleries, coffee shops, and even pubs and clubs (e.g.
High Pavement Chapel High Pavement Chapel is a redundant church building in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England. It is now the Pitcher and Piano public house and is Grade II listed. It was built as, and for most of its existence operated as, a Unitarian place of wo ...
in Nottingham). Many are converted into residential properties. In some cases—such as the grade-I-listed St Ninian's, Brougham, a Churches Conservation Trust church—the building's remote location makes alternative use impractical.


Methodist buildings

The popularity of
Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's br ...
and other non-conformist churches in the 19th century has left many chapel buildings which cannot be sustained. At their height, various Methodist factions ran about 14,000 chapels in the UK. Today, the United Methodists own just over 6,000, and dispose of about 100 each year. Particularly significant chapels may be taken into the care of the
Historic Chapels Trust The Historic Chapels Trust is a British Registered Charity set up to care for redundant non- Anglican churches, chapels, and places of worship in England. To date, its holdings encompass various nonconformist Christian denominations and Rom ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Redundant Church Anglican church buildings Redundant church Redundant church