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DON’T JUST LOVE IT. HELP SAVE IT.

Plague, war, fire. Churches have stood through it all. But they won’t survive the next five years without you.

Please donate to help keep churches open
A large church - Newark St Mary Magdalene in Newark - with large windows. There are bare trees and colourful flowers in the foreground and a blue sky with few clouds.
Mat Fascione

Breaking news: churches will soon need to pay VAT on repairs

On the 22 January 2026, the UK Government confirmed the end of Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. It will be replaced by a £92 million grant scheme called the Places of Worship Renewal Fund. We welcome the funding, but there's a catch. Churches will now have to pay tax.

Find out more

Keeping church buildings open and in use

Our impact in numbers

  • Over 2000 Churches and chapels

    We've helped keep open, in good repair and supporting local people since 2007.

  • £ 2.6 million awarded in 2025

    To churches and chapels for urgent repairs, new facilities and essential maintenance.

  • 12 Churches and chapels

    Removed from the Heritage at Risk Register in 2025 with the support of our grants.

Church of the Week

Church of the Week

Preston, Lancashire

The spire of our Church of the Week – St Walburge’s church in Preston, Lancashire – towers over the city. At 309 feet tall, it’s visible for miles around – the tallest spire on a parish church and the third tallest spire overall in the UK. Designed by the Gothic Revival architect Joseph Hansom, the spire is made of repurposed limestone sleepers that originally carried the Preston and Longridge Railway. The inside of the spire is just as interesting as the outside – as well as its record-breaking height, it contains the heaviest swinging bell in Lancashire at 1.5 tonnes. If you climb the 173 spiral steps to the top of the spire, you’ll be rewarded with a magnificent 360-degree view over Preston and westwards to Blackpool and the Irish Sea coast. St Walburge’s received a National Churches Trust Maintenance Grant in 2018 and a Cornerstone Grant in 2022, to help ensure this magnificent building can stay open into the future for everyone to enjoy. If you visit, as well as taking in the spire, you can see a stunning Gothic Revival interior with Jesuit sensibilities, the spectacular Rose Window, and 24 life-sized statues of saints.

View Preston St Walburge
A cross with 'The National Churches Survey' written on it.

The National Churches Survey results

The National Churches Survey sets out clearly the challenges that churches are facing and also the opportunities for renewal, if we act together. Without intervention the risks are high – we risk losing these buildings and all they embody – for good. Let us rise to that call, so that churches, chapels and meeting houses continue to stand as beacons of hope in the United Kingdom now and for many generations to come.

A photo of some of the beautiful stained glass at Great Malvern Priory. You can see one large arched window and several smaller windows on the left and right hand side.
Amy Burcher

Danger zones revealed: Heritage at Risk Register

Every year in England, Historic England update and publish their Heritage at Risk Register, showing what listed buildings across the country have fallen into disrepair. The National Churches Trust analyses this data and provides a breakdown of places of worship that are at risk – drawing national attention to these beautiful buildings, to help them to be saved.

A large stone church with a red roof and prominent square tower on the left-hand side of the image. Photographed on a cloudy yet sunny day.
Hassocks5489

Another 80 churches saved for the future

Through our latest round of grants, we can reveal that more than £900,000 has been awarded to churches, chapels and meeting houses across the country, to keep these magnificent buildings open and in use. Explore our gallery to find out more about the projects happening at these unique places of worship and hear from the churches directly about the impact of the grant and what it will achieve.