Historic Churches 2019

40 BCD SPECIAL REPORT ON HISTORIC CHURCHES 26 TH ANNUAL EDITION in more remote rural communities all increase the risk of churches closing. However, it is the challenge of adapting churches to meet the needs of modern- day worship that makes Scotland’s historic churches especially vulnerable to redundancy. Buildings are required to provide warm and comfortable flexible spaces with level access, parking and toilets, and they need to be economical to operate. In its report to the 2019 General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the General Trustees (the property- owning body of the Church) noted that ‘land and buildings are resources for worship and mission and not an end in themselves.’ With the aim of providing buildings that are fit for purpose and sustainable, the General Trustees have developed a strategy with the overall theme of ‘well-equipped spaces in the right places.’ A Land and Buildings Plan consultation paper will be considered at the 2019 General Assembly with a view to presenting a finalised plan in 2020. Increased levels of redundancy are inevitable. Indeed, the General Trustees previously indicated that an overall reduction of up to 40 per cent of their church buildings in the coming decade might be necessary. More remote areas are likely to be particularly severely affected by closures, and this has already been seen in some parts of Scotland, most notably the Shetland Islands. In October 2018, the closure of 20 of the Presbytery of Shetland’s 31 churches was announced, including Hillswick, Shetland’s oldest church, dating from 1733. In another radical move, the Howe of Fife congregation has taken a decision in principle to close and dispose of all four of its churches and build a new place of worship at the centre of the parish. This echoes the Orkney parish of Birsay, Harray and Sandwick, which over a period of years closed all of its historic kirks, replacing them with the multi-purpose eco-friendly Milestone Community Church in 2012. St Peter’s, the former parish church of Sandwick, was acquired by Historic Churches Scotland in 1998 for £1 in a derelict state and extensively repaired and conserved in 2003–4. The church is used for weddings and funerals and hosts musical events including excursion concerts as part of the St Magnus International Festival. It is open to the public and, in partnership with the Churches Conservation Trust, hosts ‘Champing’ (overnight stays in churches) during the summer months. NEW SOLUTIONS TO CLOSURE In an effort to be more innovative, the General Trustees are exploring alternatives to closure and disposal of churches. Traditionally, surplus buildings have been placed on the open market, and the Church of Scotland’s website typically lists between five and ten churches for sale at any one time (seven at the time of writing, together with manses, halls, glebes, and other residential properties). Churches are typically sold without planning consent or a development brief, and buyers are required to consult with local planners to establish what reuse options might be permissible. Recently, however, the option of a negotiated sale has been considered, in which a congregation remains in a church as one of a number of users and occupiers. Another innovation being investigated is the creation of rural hubs in which a church provides a base for essential services such as the police or post office. Similarly, a congregation might leave their church and relocate to worship in a hub building as a tenant. Whether in a rural or an urban setting, sharing of space and facilities in order to make best use of a building, and to reduce costs, makes good practical sense. The challenge is to do this in a way that is not detrimental to the significance of a church, and to ensure that adaptations are carried out sensitively and in an informed way. An example of an historic church successfully sharing space without detrimental impact on its significance is St Munn’s Church in Kilmun, on the shores of the Holy Loch in Argyll. Kilmun has a rich religious history dating back to the 6th century when Fintan Munnu (Saint Munn), a contemporary of Saint Columba, arrived from Ireland and built a chapel. The category A listed church replaced the 15th-century St Mund’s Collegiate Church, the west tower of which survives as a scheduled monument. The complex historical site includes the Argyll Mausoleum (1795–6), resting place of the Dukes and Earls of Argyll, Chiefs of the Clan Campbell, and the Douglas of Glenfinart Mausoleum (1888). Led by the Benmore and Kilmun Community Development Trust, a charitable trust was established to restore the mausoleum and create a visitor centre within the church to interpret and celebrate the nationally important religious heritage of the area. The project was completed in 2014, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund (now the National Lottery Heritage Fund) and Historic Environment Scotland, and enabled by a 30 year lease of part of the church and a similar lease from Argyll and Bute Council for the mausoleum. The Historic Kilmun project demonstrates that thoughtful and sensitive adaptation of an historic church can enable worship to co-exist with a complementary function, in this case tourism. Regrettably, uncertainty about the future of worship in the church poses a question about the longer-term sustainability of St Munn’s. COMMUNITY ACTION Perhaps as a consequence of the Scottish government’s emphasis on community empowerment, there has been an increase in the number of local initiatives in the face of threats posed by the closure or the poor condition of churches. In particular, there has been an increase in the number of redundant churches acquired by local trusts in order to retain a community space or asset following the closure of the post office, shop, pub and school. Although a long-established practice in Scotland, with examples of community-led trusts acquiring and St Peter’s, the former parish church of Sandwick in Orkney, was purchased by Historic Churches Scotland and extensively repaired and conserved in 2003–4. The church is used for weddings and funerals, is open to visitors, and hosts Champing in partnership with the Churches Conservation Trust. (Photo: Historic Churches Scotland)

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