The Government has made changes to the Listed Places of Worship grant scheme to cover more repairs and alterations.

The changes come into effect from 1 October and will enable more listed places of worship to claim for grants.

The scheme has been extended to include works to pipe organs, turret clocks, bells and bell ropes. Professional services directly related to eligible building work such as architect fees will also become eligible.

From 1 October, applications to make use of the scheme will be accepted from religious and charitable groups whose main purpose is to conserve, repair and maintain redundant listed places of worship which are not in private ownership.

Changes have also been made to simplify the claims process, including allowing each place of worship to submit one claim for a value between £500 and £1,000 in any 12 month period, in addition to an unlimited number of claims for work costing upwards of £1,000.

Scanned and photocopied invoices will now be accepted to support claims, and the scheme will process payment runs each week to deliver a smoother flow of payments to applicants helping applicants receive their grants more quickly.