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Law & Religion UK was conceived as a forum for the academically-rigorous exploration of the interactions between law and religion – broadly defined – together with the human rights issues associated with them. It is co-edited by Frank Cranmer and David Pocklington, both of whom are Honorary Research Fellows at the Centre for Law & Religion, Cardiff Law School, and have been posting on L&RUK since 2012.
The Editors are always interested in guest posts from colleagues in the field of law and religion. We also welcome pertinent comments on current developments that reflect the views and opinions of their respective authors and meet the General Conditions applying to the site. However, those that do not meet those criteria or which are otherwise unidentifiable are unlikely to be published, especially comments that are abusive or defamatory. For more information see our comments policy below.
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We started regular posting in June 2012 and our milestone 2.0 million page-views was achieved in January 2021. The site has over 900 subscribers and the L&RUK Twitter account Law & Religion UK @FCranmer has ~1,800 followers. Readership of the blog is issue driven, and we have an average of 700 page-views per day.
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Frank Cranmer & David Pocklington
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Thank you for this further question, John. However, as I indicated on 28 February 2022, our Terms and Conditions indicate that we do not give advice on individual cases; furthermore neither Frank nor I are in practice. Regards, David Pocklington
Sorry to have bothered you, David, but many thanks anyway. John
No problem, John.
Under the Burial Act 1857, it is an offence for a body or any human remains which have been interred in a place of burial to be removed unless one of the conditions listed in subsection (2) is complied, https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/20-21/81/section/25
Sorry: as a matter of policy we don’t give legal advice. We are not competent to do so, neither do we carry the necessary indemnity insurance.
If it’s a Church of England burial ground, I suggest you seek advice from the Diocesan Registrar, not least because you will almost certainly need a faculty to carry out the proposed works. If the burial ground belongs to one of the Free Churches, you should consult the denomination’s property officer.
Ok thank you Frank
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I have tried your search facility but cannot find any relevant articles [perhaps because you have not covered the issue]. Have you written anything on the removal of ashes from churchyards, notably in the case of redundant churches?
Turning ashes into jewels is an interesting matter but not relevant. Thank you for all the work you put into your newsletters.
TIA
Under s.25 Burial Act 1857 (Offence of removal of body from burial ground), in England and Wales “It is an offence for a body or any human remains which have been interred in a place of burial to be removed” without either a faculty or a licence from the Ministry of Justice. There are numerous judgments on the treatment of ashes by the consistory courts of the Church of England, many of which are listed in our Index.
Dear Frank and David
Thank you for your interesting L&R posts.
I have a question for you that you may have covered in an earlier post but I have missed it – what are the laws/practices about PCCs (Church of England) paying honoraria?
Many PCCs, and particularly the smaller ones, do not employ an organist or verger but like to give them “a little something” in recognition of their service – often regularly (monthly or annually). I understand that honoraria are taxable in the hands of the recipient so if they are a tax-payer they need to declare it on their tax-return. I have 2 questions for you but expect you have many more points that I haven’t thought of:
1. By paying an honorarium, might the PCC be deemed an employer by HMRC? and
2. If the recipient is also a member of the PCC (ie a trustee) should the decision to make these payments be minuted at a PCC meeting (with the relevant PCC member abstaining from the discussion and vote) and also reported in the annual financial statements.
It has been suggested to me that PCCs would be better off recognising the work of their organists &/or vergers by giving them vouchers (such as Amazon) instead.
I’d appreciate your thoughts/a post on the subject.
Thank you and best wishes
Cosy
Dear Cosy, thank you for your interesting question, on which my knowledge is only peripheral.
At SS Peter and Paul, Wantage, we are fortunate in having a well-resourced Music Guild which has been in operation for a number of years. Its initial purpose was to provide funding for an organist in addition to the Director of Music who is funded by the church. The Music Guild funds were later augmented by the legacy of a former chorister, in addition to regular fund-raising events, and now it funds choral and organ scholarships and others, but in view of the various exceptions which may, or may not be applicable, advice from someone more knowledgeable than myself is necessary.
Best regards
DavidP
I’ve thought hard about how to reply. Surely this isn’t an employment issue; the point is that income is taxable whether it’s a “salary”, an “honorarium” or (in the case of C of E clergy with freehold), a “stipend”. The employment status of the recipient doesn’t matter. Similarly, if you pay someone in Amazon vouchers or whatever, it’s a taxable benefit in kind.
As to the position where a payment is to a trustee, there’s Charity Commission guidance, here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/payments-to-charity-trustees-what-the-rules-are.
Hope this helps.
Frank
If the Organist is legally an “employee“, then there will be certain obligations laid upon the PCC in relation, potentially, to PAYE, National Insurance, holiday pay, and possibly pension arrangements – to mention a few. Some of these may be inapplicable given the likely rate of remuneration. There is a helpful guidance note from the Church of England which can be found here: https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2017-12/general-synod-legal-advisory-commission-parish-music-organists-and-choirmasters-and-church-musicians.pdf