2025 is now well underway and the festivities of Christmas and the New Year are well behind us, although perhaps the self-imposed diets are a small reminder of the overindulgences in that period.
The start of a new year always tends to make us look forward to what could be achieved in the course of the next 12 months and we make New Year resolutions. I wonder how many of these are actually kept.
Looking to the year ahead in ringing terms, there is a major ringing opportunity around the celebrations for VE Day in May as this year marks the 80th Anniversary of this event. Already there has been a request for bells to be rung nationally at 6:30pm on Thursday 8th May and I am sure that many towers will also be commemorating this event over the following weekend. Please do make a note of this event and try to organise some ringing for that Thursday evening.
This year also marks the end of my term of office as Chairman and I will be standing down at the Association AGM at Sevenoaks on Monday 21st April. The Association will need a new Chairman and it is a role that I have thoroughly enjoyed. As well as chairing the AGM on Easter Monday and the General Committee Meetings, of which there are 4 a year (usually in February, April, July and November), the post gives the holder an opportunity to steer the Association forward and promote and develop the interests of the Association. Please do feel free to contact me if you would like to know more about the role.
One of the areas that has been developed during my tenure has been that of safeguarding. As some of you know, I am a teacher and safeguarding processes and procedures are an important part of a teacher’s role in their day-to-day work. Whilst there has recently been a major issue with safeguarding procedures within the church, it does not belie the fact that we need to be aware of safeguarding procedures within our own churches and it is a requirement that all ringers have undertaken at least the Basic Awareness training and many churches also require their ringers to undertake the Foundation training.
Earlier this month, the Association laid on a face-to-face training day where both of these levels were covered. I think that it was beneficial for the attendees as we were able to tailor the training to make it more relevant for ringers. We are hoping to lay on more of these sessions in the future. Although the training can be done online, the face-to-face sessions do offer an opportunity to talk about issues and problems in more depth and generate some very helpful discussions.
Earlier this week, I posted a short note regarding the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme being up for review on the 23rd January. This scheme allows churches to reclaim VAT on certain building works as part of renovations and improvements and their related professional fees. The review has now taken place and the government have agreed that the Listed Places of Worship Grant will be retained for a further year. However, the annual budget made available to the scheme has almost halved from £42m to £23m. This has resulted in the need to cap the limit of VAT that can be reclaimed to just £25000 for each successful application
John Bailey, who is a specialist conservation architect who works with many churches in the South East has said that it is estimated that this will save around £5m annually. It is also likely to seriously reduce the number of major repair works and other projects that could be claimed through this scheme which could have a huge knock-on effect. In some cases, projects may now need to find a further £600000 immediately to complete projects that are underway or the work will simply stop. This has a huge impact not just on church buildings but also on projects that are linked to the fabric of the church which includes bell frames.
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) accepts that the fabric of a church includes a bell frame, but does not include fittings such as the bells themselves or ringing fittings. However, it should be noted that they also say that a new bell frame that occupies a different position from the existing frame; a new bell frame that differs in size or design from the existing bell frame or alterations to an existing bell frame to carry an extra bell or bells can be zero-rated.
They also state that new or additional bells, installed at the same time as a zero-rated bell frame or a zero-rated alteration to an existing bell frame or a completely new set of ringing fittings needed to operate bells, supplied in conjunction with, and at the same time, as the provision of a zero-rated bell frame will also be exempt from VAT.
Nevertheless, this decision will have a huge impact not only on what repair, developments and restoration work churches will now be able to carry out but also on the trades involved in the conservation work that is carried out as well as those associated with our own activities.
Neil Jones
KCACR Chairman