A vital scheme that helps historic and often listed churches fund essential repairs is to end in September this year.

The Heritage Lottery Fund's Grants for Places of Worship programme will close to new applications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The programme may continue in Scotland, as it is a joint initiative with Historic Environment Scotland.

In its place, some funding for repairs to churches and other places of worship can be applied for through the fund's existing Our Heritage and Heritage Grants programmes. 

Under these new arrangements,100 per cent of works and activities can be funded with no requirement for partnership funding. The current scheme requires churches to match the funding.

More money will also be available. Previous grants were limited to £250,000 per application. Under Heritage Grants, applicants can apply for up to £5 million per application, according to the HLF.

Claire Walker, chief executive of the National Churches Trust, which is running an opinion poll about the changes, said: 'Many people think that the Church of England or the Vatican pay for the upkeep of the UK's church buildings. That's just not true – it is up to parishes themselves to raise the money needed to repair a leaking roof or fix a crumbling spire.

'That's why the Grants for Places of Worship scheme has been so important in supporting churches, chapels and meeting houses by providing vitally needed funding to ensure these buildings remain in good repair."

'It is therefore important that at least the existing level of HLF grants for funding church buildings continues to be made available through the new arrangement."

'The fact that the Government's Roof Repair Fund, which made available £55 million in 2015-2016, was substantially oversubscribed, shows that there is a need for more, rather than less, funding to ensure the long term survival of our precious heritage of church buildings.'

Churches are the UK's single most important category of historic buildings, with 12,500 church buildings listed and 45 per cent of all England's Grade I listed buildings cathedrals and churches. They are unmatched for history, architecture and sheer variety anywhere else in the world."

A poll by ComRes, commissioned by the National Churches Trust in December 2016, showed that more than four in five Britons  agree that the UK's churches, chapels and meeting houses are an important part of the UK's heritage and history.

The poll also showed that 57 per cent of British adults believe it is the government's responsibility to help to fund repairs."

HLF is facing declining income due to fall in lottery sales.

In a letter sent by Sir Peter Luff, Chairman of the HLF, to the Church of England and seen by Christian Today, Sir Peter says: 'I am anxious to ensure that the Churches of the United Kingdom all understand exactly what it is we are doing and why we are doing it and are able make suggestions that we should consider before we finalise our detailed plans.'

He added: 'We remain absolutely committed to supporting the heritage of places of worship. We are not scrapping grants for places of worship, but rather merging them into existing programmes. As we do this we will protect the proportion of our funding to churches, make applications less onerous, offer places of worship more flexibility in what they can apply for, provide clear explanations of the new process, and so enhance the sustainability of the places of worship themselves. In the longer term we will consult on further possible changes that will benefit churches and others, such as increasing the thresholds for the smaller Our Heritage grants to levels significantly higher than the current £100,000.' 

Sir Peter is offering to meet church and other faith leaders to reassure them of HLF's 'undimmed commitment to the heritage of places of worship'. 

However, churches and other bodies are concerned because the new arrangements mean that for the first time since 1977 there will be no dedicated or 'ring-fenced' Government or Government heritage body funding for churches.

And although the HLF has said that funding for churches will be maintained at similar levels, churches will have to compete for funding with other organisations, which may be better resourced or more experienced at making funding applications.

And even though same amount of money may be available to churches, there are fears this will go to larger, more prestigious projects the HLF can showcase and not to the small churches that need roofs fixed.

There is now a move among church leaders to campaign for an annual Government repair fund of £10 million.

A source told Christian Today: 'The manner of the HLF consultation on these changes was really terrible. Indeed, they did not consult Historic England at all.

'In particular, the HLF decision was taken in isolation from the work of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport's Church Sustainability Review, which has been examining issues including maintenance costs and repairs and funding from lottery and central government grants, and is expected to report shortly. And their announcement came in the middle of a Government review into the work of the HLF and before the HLF's own consultation on its next Strategic Review.'