Places of worship campaign

The Victoria Society have this from their  Facebook Group:

Places of Worship at The Heritage Alliance (POWAlliance) has joined
forces with the Church of England and English Heritage in the campaign to preserve the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme beyond its planned expiry date of March 2011.

This grants scheme enables listed places of worship to claim back the VAT
(17.5%) on all costs incurred for repairs and maintenance to the building,
professional fees and repair works to fixtures such as bells and organs. In real terms this has meant over £100 million since April 2001.

Such financial support has not only helped safeguard our national heritage (churches receive no other government funding or grants), but has also ensured that cathedrals and churches across the country can continue to be vital community resources, meeting people’s spiritual, social and educational needs.

If the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme is allowed to expire, many
communities will struggle to keep their churches open and in good repair,
thus jeopardizing the valuable service those buildings provide as well as
our national heritage.

There is now a petition available for signing on the 10 Downing Street
website. It can be found at:-

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/VAT-refundscheme/

Find out more abut this new alliance here:

http://www.heritagelink.org.uk/places-of-worship/

and here:

http://www.nationalchurchestrust.org/