THE TRUST

You will be aware that people travel from around the world to visit the beautiful towns and countryside of Lincolnshire. It will be no surprise to know that they also take in the splendour of our historic churches and chapels. Everyone expects the church to be there when they want it , but the cost of preserving even the fabric is often well beyond local means.

Churches and other places of worship in Lincolnshire have survived for centuries yet they quickly fall into decay if not properly maintained. The small communities in the diverse range of parishes cannot cope when their churches are faced with problems such as deathwatch beetle, rotting floors, crumbling masonry and other structural defects – both internal and external – brought about by natural causes.

As a result Lincolnshire Churches Trust was founded to help churches and chapels to be preserved and kept open for worship. Throughout Lincolnshire there are wonderful places of worship which are part of our heritage, and with your help they can be preserved. Our role is to raise the much needed funds which will be distributed in the form of grants. Most importantly, funds are distributed on a basis of need, irrespective of denomination.

Our work is carried out entirely on a voluntary basis thus keeping expenses to an absolute minimum. We give you our pledge that any help you give will be put to the best possible use.

Aims and Objectives

To assist in the preservation and repair of churches and chapels, in order to render them ` wind and watertight`, of all Christian denominations within the area of benefit , which is to say “within the historical boundaries of Lincolnshire” , providing such buildings are at least 100 years old . We have also extended our brief to consider giving grant aid towards the sensitive introduction of new toilet and servery facilities into such churches, provided the fabric of the building is already in good order, as we feel that the introduction of such facilities can greatly increase the value and use of the building to the local community and thus help to ensure its continued maintenance in the future.  We do not assist with repairs to redundant churches.

History

The Lincolnshire Churches Trust was set up in the wake of the Archbishops’ Commission on Historic Churches. Following preliminary meetings The Lincolnshire Old Churches Trust was formally inaugurated on 10 October 1953 under the active presidency of the Earl of Ancaster, Lord Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, who took the chair at all but one of the trustees’ meetings from then until his retirement thirty years later. The other founding trustees were drawn from leaders in the church and community and from the start they worked hard to arouse local interest by public meetings and publications. In 2008 the Trust name was formally changed to Lincolnshire Churches Trust as it was felt that the inclusion of the word “old” was confusing to supporters as LCT does not support redundant churches. The Trust is non-denominational and assists Christian churches or other buildings used for public worship for the time being, so long as the aid requested meets the Charity’s criteria.

Historic Lincolnshire is more than 100 miles in length and contains over 700 churches. This means the area for which Lincolnshire Churches Trust is responsible remains as it was before the local government changes in 1973, i.e. churches and places of worship in North and North East Lincolnshire (formerly South Humberside) are part of its remit.