Historic Environment Scotland (HES) opened Scotland’s Places of Worship Fund on 1 October, a pilot of up to £1 million to help listed places of worship cover VAT on repair and conservation work. It replaces support from a UK-wide scheme that has closed.
Listed places of worship of any faith or denomination can apply. As examples, HES cites a Scandinavian-style church in Ardrossan and a mosque in a former Arts and Crafts church in Glasgow. Funding is allocated first come, first served, so the fund may close early.
The scheme runs until March 2027 and will also help the Scottish Government assess demand and plan future support. Application information is available in Arabic, Gaelic, Polish, Hindi, Urdu and Hebrew, and more than 100 faith representatives were consulted.
