The Very Reverend Chris Dalliston, Dean of Newcastle welcome the Government announcemnt this week on partially addressing the issue created in the budget announcement to remove VAT exemptions for alteration to listed buildings.   

 In an agreement struct between the government and the Church of England, £30M of extra money will be made available to the £12M already earmarked for the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme (LPWGS).

Speaking after learning of this agreement Chris Dallisto said: "This a very positive step in meeting the concerns of those who are seeking to open up their historic buildings for the wider community and make them “fit for purpose” in the twenty first century. 

"It is heartening to see that the Government has recognised the concerns we have raised and has gone a long way towards ensuring that creative thinking about the use of our heritage assets will not be penalised. Funding such work in hard times remains a challenge but this will be real encouragement to church communities across the region who are looking to reach out to the wider community.”