Review of the ecclesiastical court judgments during 2024
In total 142 consistory court judgments were circulated in 2024 including:
- Procedure [4]
- Reordering, extensions and other building works [59]
- Church Treasures/ Sale of Paintings/ Loans/ Memorials [2]
- Audio Visual Equipment [0]
- Telecommunications [0]
- Exhumation [27]
- Churchyards and burials [47]
- Organs [1]
- Fonts [1]
- Bells [0]
- Other [1]
This end-of-year review also includes: CDM Decisions and Safeguarding; Reports from the Independent Reviewer; Privy Council Business; Other legal issues; Visitations; CFCE Determinations; and Links to other posts relating to ecclesiastical law.
- Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2024] ECC Lei 2 The Chancellor refused to grant a faculty: “The Progress Pride flag is not a Christian emblem … it is a secular contemporary emblem used for many causes and contemporary discourse … The focus, purpose and celebration of the Holy Communion is for all to come to Jesus and remember His sacrifice … It is clear that there is not a unified belief that the proposed Altar frontal achieves this message of oneness in Christ”. [Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2024] ECC Lei 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
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Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2023] ECC Lei 3 In his decision in Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2023] ECC Lei 1, the Chancellor concerning which of the nine people who had objected to the petition had a sufficient interest in the subject-matter of the petition. The Chancellor had determined that three of the nine objectors had a sufficient interest. However, subsequent correspondence required the Chancellor to reconsider whether one of the three had a sufficient interest.
In Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2023] ECC Lei 2 he determined to give the person concerned a short period in which to provide further information before the Chancellor made a decision.
In Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2023] ECC Lei 3 the Acting Chancellor set aside his original order in so far as he now considered that one of those three objectors did not have a sufficient interest in the petition. [Re St. Nicholas Leicester [2023] ECC Lei 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
- Re St. Bartholomew Orford [2024] ECC SEI 2 This is a judgment following an application by the petitioners in Re St. Bartholomew Orford [2024] ECC SEI 1 for an order that the party opponent should contribute towards the costs of the proceedings. The Chancellor rejected the application, as he had “seen no evidence submitted by the petitioners in relation to any increase in procedural costs or increased correspondence costs caused by the unreasonable or other behaviour of the party opponent.” [Re St. Bartholomew Orford [2024] ECC SEI 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Reordering, extensions and other building works [59]
- Substantial reordering [4]
- Reordering and alternative uses [6]
- Other building works, including re-roofing [17]
- Removal and replacement of pews [13]
- Net zero issues [19]
[top]
Re St. Michael and All Angels Byker [2023] ECC New 5 The petition proposed extensive reordering works, both inside and outside the church. Victoria Society objections. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the missional advantages of the proposed works outweighed the harm alleged. [Re St. Michael and All Angels Byker [2023] ECC New 5] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Thomas the Martyr Newcastle upon Tyne [2023] ECC New 6 A faculty had been granted in 2021 ([2021] ECC New 1) for a major reordering to meet the church’s needs and support its mission following its designation as a Resource Church. The present petition proposed the restoration of the Harrison & Harrison organ (which was no longer in a playable condition) in two phases over a period of ten years. The Chancellor granted a faculty for the first phase of the work to be completed within five years, with leave for the petitioner to apply in five years’ time for an extension of the faculty to authorise the second phase. [Re St. Thomas the Martyr Newcastle upon Tyne [2023] ECC New 6] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Leonard Oakley [2024] ECC Win 1 The petitioners proposed the creation of an extension and new entrance linked to the west door of the church, including kitchen and WC facilities, and also pew removal and extensive reordering of the main part of the church building. The Chancellor refused to grant a faculty. Whilst he saw a clear justification for some parts of the proposals, he did not consider that, overall, the justification outweighed the potential harm to the Grade II* church. [Re St. Leonard Oakley [2024] ECC Win 1] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re Christ Church Woking [2024] ECC Gui 1 A faculty was granted for an extensive programme of reordering was proposed in order to accommodate all the increasing activities of this very busy church. [Re Christ Church Woking [2024] ECC Gui 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Reordering and alternative uses
Re St. Mary Threlkeld [2023] ECC Car 4 Several items of reordering were proposed, in order to make the space in the church more flexible for church and community groups and events. The Deputy Chancellor refused to grant a faculty for secondary glazing and a replacement heating system, owing to lack of detailed information provided by the petitioners. [Re St. Mary Threlkeld [2023] ECC Car 4] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Margaret Rottingdean [2024] ECC Chi 1 Further to an interim faculty in 2021, authorizing certain works, the Chancellor was satisfied that the works would improve liturgical use of the building and permit a range of community uses for concerts and events, and that the public benefit in implementing the proposals would outweigh the limited harm that would result. [Re St. Margaret Rottingdean [2024] ECC Chi 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Luke Blackburn [2024] ECC Bla 3 In 2021 a Faculty had been granted for extensive reordering of the unlisted 19th century church, following its relaunch as a youth resourcing church. Notwithstanding objections from the Victorian Society regarding the removal of the pulpit, the Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the style of worship in the church had changed fundamentally and that the pulpit and other items were no longer needed for worship in the church. [Re St. Luke Blackburn [2024] ECC Bla 3] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re All Saints Ripley [2024] ECC Lee 2 The Chancellor granted a faculty for a number of items of reordering in the Grade II* listed church, satisfied that the works would cause only marginal harm. [Re All Saints Ripley [2024] ECC Lee 2] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Mary Almeley [2024] ECC Her 1 The Chancellor reminded the petitioners of Canon F1, which requires the font to be sited near the main entrance to the church. As he decided that he could find no exceptional liturgical or other reason for moving the font, he declined to grant a faculty. [Re St. Mary Almeley [2024] ECC Her 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
See also Re Holy Trinity Cookham.
Other building works, including re-roofing
Re St. Peter and St. Paul Pettistree [2023] ECC SEI 3 In 2014, the inspecting architect had recommended Zinsser Grade 1 paint for the redecoration of the interior of the church as authorised by faculty. The paint proved to be totally unsuitable. The CBC, Historic England and the SPAB rejected both options (a) and (b), preferring overpainting, which the Parochial Church Council did not consider would solve the problem. The Chancellor granted a faculty to remove the Zinsser paint from the walls, and also the plaster beneath it and then to apply new render to the walls, followed by a suitable number of coats of limewash to the fresh wall surface. [Re St. Peter and St. Paul Pettistree [2023] ECC SEI 3] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St Egelwin the Martyr Scalford [2024] ECC Lei 1 To meet the increased needs of the church and the community, the proposal was for the creation of a meeting room between the vestry and the servery at the west end of the church. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the justification for carrying out the proposals outweighed any potential harm. [Re St Egelwin the Martyr Scalford [2024] ECC Lei 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Andrew Andreas (“Kirk Andreas”) [2024] ECC Nor 1 The Chancellor granted a faculty to allow a series of ‘Manx Crosses’ (stone crosses and slabs bearing crosses) to be displayed in armoured glass cabinets which would form a wall between the west end of the church and the church hall. [Re St. Andrew Andreas, Kirk Andreas, [2024] EC Sodor 1] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Nicholas East Dereham [2024] ECC Nor 3 The petition sought permission for several works in the Grade I listed church, including the levelling of the floor of the Cowper Chapel for the proposed meeting room. The Chancellor granted a faculty for all the items as proposed. [Re St. Nicholas East Dereham [2024] ECC Nor 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Holy Trinity Wordsley [2024] ECC Wor 1 The petitioners applied for, firstly, a confirmatory faculty in respect of works previously carried out without faculty, including destruction of the pulpit and reuse of the timber to make a new font, and cutting down a mature tree; and, secondly, a faculty to authorise the construction of a prayer room, the re-siting of an 1831 font and the moving of an 1888 font to a baby memorial in the churchyard. The Chancellor granted a faculty for all the items, except that the proposed relocation of the 1888 font to the baby memorial in the churchyard was adjourned generally. [Re Holy Trinity Wordsley [2024] ECC Wor 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2023] ECC She 4 The petitioners sought to remove permanently from the roof of the church a stone pinnacle, having been advised by stonemasons working on the roof that it was dangerously unstable and could fall at any time. On 24th February 2023 the Chancellor had granted an interim faculty for the removal of the pinnacle. This judgment was issued subsequently, setting out the Chancellor’s decision and directing the grant of a faculty. [Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2023] ECC She 4] [[Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Ia the Virgin St. Ives [2024] ECC Tru 1 The Vicar of St Ia sought a faculty for alterations to the church to improve accessibility, welcome and hospitality. [Re St. Ia the Virgin St. Ives [2024] ECC Tru 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Bartholomew Bristol [2024] ECC Bri 1 In 2017 and 2018, two items of work had been carried out at the unlisted late Victorian church without the authority of a faculty. The Chancellor accepted the apologies of the new petitioners and granted a faculty. [Re St. Bartholomew Bristol [2024] ECC Bri 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2024] ECC She 2 The petitioners proposed a 21-space car park in the churchyard of the Victorian Grade II church, in order to formalise existing parking arrangements. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the works were designed to “have a low impact visually and to protect the grass surface of the churchyard, to minimise disturbance of grave sites and to fulfil an obvious need for visitors to the church”. [Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2024] ECC She 2 ] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2024] ECC She 3 The works proposed were for the construction of below ground drainage infrastructure in the churchyard, east of the chancel, to facilitate the future installation of toilets in the church, which would be the subject of a separate faculty petition. The Chancellor granted a faculty. [Re St. John the Evangelist Goole [2024] ECC She 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary the Virgin Sprotbrough [2024] ECC She 4 The petitioners proposed the creation of a social space, including a kitchen hub, at the west end of the south aisle of the church. Which is the most modern part of the Grade I Norman church. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the works did not impact the historical and architectural significance of the church building. [Re St. Mary the Virgin Sprotbrough [2024] ECC She 4] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Peter Egmond [2024] ECC Lic 2 In 2021 one of the tower pinnacles had fallen in a storm, and in 2022 the remaining three pinnacles had been found to be unsafe and had been removed under an interim faculty. A confirmatory faculty was grated in 2023, with a condition that the pinnacles be restored within 3 years, though that condition had been omitted from the faculty. The Chancellor decided to reinstate the condition that the pinnacles should be restored within a given period, but changed the period to 5 years. [Re St. Peter Egmond [2024] ECC Lic 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John the Baptist Holywell [2024] ECC Ely 1 A large reordering project was proposed. The Chancellor granted a faculty, subject to a condition that no work should commence until 75% of the cost of the work, or of a particular phase, had been raised or promised. [Re St. John the Baptist Holywell [2024] ECC Ely 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St Mary the Virgin, Stevington [2024] ECC StA 1 The petition requested a confirmatory faculty in respect of the replacement of an extremely rare Anglo-Saxon triangular window head in the tower of the Grade I church with a head having a curved shape. The Chancellor took the view that this particular item of work should not have been authorised under List B decided to grant a faculty. [Re St Mary the Virgin, Stevington [2024] ECC StA 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Thomas the Martyr Up Holland [2024] ECC Liv 2 The Chancellor granted a confirmatory faculty in respect of extensive reordering works carried out without prior issue of a faculty. However, he was not satisfied with the quality of the storage cupboards, the kitchen servery furniture, and the units to the west wall, and made it a condition of the faculty that those items must be replaced within 12 months by furnishings which would be designed to be more in keeping with the character of the church and approved by the Diocesan Advisory Committee. [Re St. Thomas the Martyr Up Holland [2024] ECC Liv 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Kersey [2024] ECC SEI 3 An application was made for a confirmatory faculty for the temporary installation of a modern shrine/prayer station/prayer bowl and other works. The Chancellor granted a faculty, limiting the installation of the prayer bowl and the moving of the altar for a period of 5 year. [Re St. Mary Kersey [2024] ECC SEI 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Saint Julian the Hospitaller Wellow [2024] ECC B&W 2 The petitioners sought to create a doorway in the north wall of the mediaeval tower of the Grade I listed church. The DAC did not recommend the proposal and the SPAB considered intervention in the mediaeval fabric to be unjustified. The Chancellor determined that of the six alternative schemes considered by the petitioners, the chosen one would on balance be the correct one to adopt, and he accordingly granted a faculty, subject to the work not being carried out until a further faculty for the construction of the associated extension had been granted. [Re Saint Julian the Hospitaller Wellow [2024] ECC B&W 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Removal and replacement of pews
Re St. Michael Chiswick [2024] ECC Lon 1 In November 2023, the Chancellor
had granted a faculty to allow the replacement of 209 late 19th century ladderback chairs with 120 new Abbey chairs from Trinity Church Furniture. The grant of the faculty was subject to there being no objections in response to public notices. In the event notices of objection were received from eight people, who did not wish to become parties opponent. The Chancellor now decided that the petitioners had demonstrated a need for new chairs and he was satisfied with the design of chair chosen. [Re St. Michael Chiswick [2024] ECC Lon 1] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Pancras Chichester [2024] ECC Chi 2 The petitioners wished to replace the existing 1980s upholstered chairs in the Grade II listed church with 150 new upholstered chairs, which were lighter in weight and would stack more easily. The Victorian Society objected. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty: the current chairs were difficult to move and were untidy, and the new chairs would not harm the significance of the church as a building of special architectural or historic interest. [Re St. Pancras Chichester [2024] ECC Chi 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John Hoveton [2024] ECC Nor 2 The petitioners wished to replace all the oak pews, and the under pew heaters with an infrared system. All the statutory consultees criticised the proposals. The Chancellor determined that a sufficiently strong case had not been made for the removal of all the pews fand that the proposed type of chair was unsuitable; he therefore refused to grant a faculty for those items. With regard to the proposed heaters, he adjourned the petition to give the petitioners further time and to obtain an independent expert report. [Re St. John Hoveton [2024] ECC Nor 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. David Newbold-on-Stour [2024] ECC Cov 1 The petitioners wished to replace most of the wooden benches in the nave of the Grade II church with upholstered wooden chairs from a local Baptist ch,urch. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the benches were of no great quality, their replacement would remove a trip hazard, the chairs would provide the greater flexibility that the church needed, and the upholstery of the chairs was of such a colour as would not distract the viewer from taking in the splendours of the church building. [Re St. David Newbold-on-Stour [2024] ECC Cov 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St Michael Basingstoke [2024] ECC Win 2 The proposed reordering works for the Grade I church included: removal of chancel furniture and some pews (to be replaced with stackable chairs); installation of glazed lobby; kitchenette and WC facilities; and removal of the pulpit. The Chancellor did not find sufficient justification for the removal of the pulpit, but granted a faculty for the remaining items, being satisfied that any harm to the church was justified by the benefits the scheme would bring. [Re St. Michael Basingstoke [2024] ECC Win 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Bartholomew Lower Sapey [2024] ECC Wor 3 The proposed reordering works included the installation of a kitchenette and an accessible WC, with associated water supply and drainage works; installation of a new ceiling; relocation of the existing font to a redundant church in the benefice, from which it originally came, and the introduction of a new moveable font. The Chancellor considered that the proposed copper bowl to be used as a font did not ‘fulfil either the letter or the spirit of Canon F1’. She therefore decline to grant a faculty in respect of the old and new fonts, but granted a faculty for the remaining items. [Re St. Bartholomew Lower Sapey [2024] ECC Wor 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Anne Bagshot [2024] ECC Gui 2 The proposed works were: removal of the front two pews and pew fronts in the nave, together with two radiators; electrical sockets to be relocated; and carpeting to match existing. The Chancellor granted a faculty. [Re St. Anne Bagshot [2024] ECC Gui 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Augustine of Hippo Wrangthorn [2024] ECC Lee 1 Petition granted for reordering included replacing most of the pews with unupholstered chairs. [Re St. Augustine of Hippo Wrangthorn [2024] ECC Lee 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Michael Twerton-On-Avon [2024] ECC B&W 1 The petitioners now sought a confirmatory faculty for the permanent removal of the pews. The Chancellor granted a faculty for the permanent removal of the pews, but not for their disposal, which remained unlawful. A condition was attached to the faulty that the petitioners should use their best endeavours to try to recover a sample number of the missing pews. [Re St. Michael Twerton-On-Avon [2024] ECC B&W 1] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John the Baptist Wales [2024] ECC She 5 The Petition sought permission for the removal of twelve pews and their replacement with 100 chairs. The Chancellor granted a faculty provided the chairs were not upholstered. [Re St. John the Baptist Wales [2024] ECC She 5] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Knowsley [2024] ECC Liv 3 The petition related to various items of reordering. Although the Chancellor found that removal of the pews would cause ‘moderate’ harm to the building, he granted a faculty, being satisfied that a substantial benefit would be gained from having a flexible worship space and the opportunity for community use of the church. [Re St. Mary Knowsley [2024] ECC Liv 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Christ Church Gosport [2024] ECC Por 1 The petition sought permission for the removal of seven pews and a refectory table from the unlisted church to another church in the same parish. Notwithstanding the unlawful disposal of the pews, the Chancellor granted a faculty, ordering that the church should pay half the costs of preparation of the judgment. [Re Christ Church Gosport [2024] ECC Por 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. James the Greater Romanby [2024] ECC Yor 2 The petitioners sought to remove all the pews from the Victorian Grade II church and replace them with Treske chairs. The altar is its sole focus and currently this light, airy and pale coloured interior contains plain, dark brown pews. There were two important and articulate local of objection, alleging that the removal of the dark pews would strip the church of its individuality and the contrast in its interior [2] and [5]. After considering the questions raised in Re St. Alkmund Duffield (2013) Fam 146, de Mestre Ch. concluded that, whilst the removal of the pews would cause moderate harm to the church, the resulting public benefits justified the grant of a faculty. [Re St. James the Greater Romanby [2024] ECC Yor 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Knowsley [2024] ECC Liv 3 The installation of a new heating system intended to be energy efficient, with two new gas fired condensing boilers, with pipework and trenches installed to suit the new floor construction; existing wall mounted radiators and convector heaters to be retained. [Re St. Mary Knowsley [2024] ECC Liv 3]
Re St. Mary Adderbury [2024] ECC Oxf 4 The Parochial Church Council (PCC) wished to amend a faculty granted in 2023 for the installation of electric heating so as to substitute Near Infrared ‘Couronne’ chandeliers for the Far Infrared ‘Halo’ chandeliers which had been approved. The advantage of the Couronne chandeliers was that they would save the PCC £40,000; the disadvantages that they were not as attractive as the Halo chandelier and they would give off a red glow. The Chancellor considered that the proposed variation would be a major departure from what had previously been approved and would affect the character of the church as a Grade I listed building of special architectural or historic interest. He accordingly dismissed the petition. Re St. Mary Adderbury [2024] ECC Oxf 4] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. George Brailes [2024] ECC Cov 2 The Parochial Church Council wished to install an oil condenser boiler in a position outside the church which would be screened from view. The Chancellor granted a faculty for 5 years, with liberty to apply at the end of that period for an extension, when consideration would be given as to whether biofuel or an improved electrical supply would be available at that time. [Re St. George Brailes [2024] ECC Cov 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Augustine of Hippo Wrangthorn [2024] ECC Lee 1 Proposals for reordering included inter alia installation of air source heat pumps to the north of the church and installation of underfloor heating throughout the church and church hall, with the retention and relocation of existing radiators in the church to serve as back-up. Faculty granted. [Re St. Augustine of Hippo Wrangthorn [2024] ECC Lee 1]
Re Christ Church Woking [2024] ECC Gui 1 Although “A new boiler system is proposed to improve the carbon footprint and ensure a warm welcome” [7], the judgment contains no further details or reference to the Faculty Jurisdiction (Amendment) Rules 2022 which came into force on 1 July 2022. [Re Christ Church Woking [2024] ECC Gui 1].
Re St. Mary the Virgin Stebbing [2024] ECC Chd 1 The proposal was to install a buried LPG tank in the churchyard, with pipes leading to the church building. This was intended to power an LPG boiler, which would in turn power the new underfloor heating system which formed part of the works authorised by a Faculty granted in 2023. The Chancellor was satisfied that the petitioners had considered with some care the Church of England’s guidance towards achieving net zero and she accordingly granted a faculty. [Re St. Mary the Virgin Stebbing [2024] ECC Chd 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Holy Trinity Cookham [2024] ECC Oxf 1 The reordering proposals included a new heating system including underfloor heating and perimeter radiators heated by a replacement gas boiler. There was opposition from the statutory consultees. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that the petitioners, through their heating consultant, had considered all alternative sources of heating and that “at the present time, a replacement gas boiler is the only viable and affordable heating option which will meet all the relevant needs and aspirations of the church”. [Re Holy Trinity Cookham [2024] ECC Oxf 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Peter Mancroft Norwich [2024] ECC Nor 1 As part of the church’s aim to reduce its carbon footprint to net zero by 2030, the present proposal was to install solar panels on the roof of the south-aisle of the church, six storage batteries in the former organ blower room, two external heat pump evaporator units and associated cabling. The Chancellor considered that the panels would have little visual impact on the church and that the level of damage to the architectural and historical significance of the church would be very low. He therefore granted a faculty. [Re St. Peter Mancroft Norwich [2024] ECC Nor 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
See also Re St Egelwin the Martyr Scalford and Re St. Mary Threlkeld in the January 2024 case round-up. For the latter, where despite the need for a replacement system and the petitioners’ due regard to the net zero guidance, this aspect of the petition was refused through lack of detailed information.
Re St. Mary Stalbridge [2024] EC Sal 1 The PCC wished to replace the oil-fired boiler with a new oil-fired boiler. The Deputy Chancellor, in view of the PCC’s declared aim to decarbonise its heating with the development of an eco-friendly heating system within the next 5 years, granted a faculty, subject to conditions. [Re St. Mary Stalbridge [2024] EC Sal 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Anne Ings [2024] ECC Car 2 The proposal was to install 28 black solar panels on the existing slate roof on the south side of the Grade II* church, with associated battery storage to be installed in the church tower. The Lake District National Park Authority had refused planning permission, but the petitioners were planning an appeal. The Diocesan Advisory Committee (“DAC”) had recommended the proposal, but Historic England, the Georgian Group and Historic Buildings & Places had raised objections, without becoming parties opponent.
The Chancellor considered that the proposal, if implemented, would cause only moderate harm to the building and would be reversible. He also observed that the proposal would be a response to the Church of England’s call to action in respect of climate change. He granted a faculty subject to conditions that planning consent should first be obtained and that the panels should be removed after 26 years, the DAC’s estimate as to the probable lifespan of the panels. [Re St. Anne Ings [2024] ECC Car 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
See also Re St. Augustine of Hippo Wrangthorn, where the proposals for reordering included inter alia the installation of air source heat pumps to the north of the church and installation of underfloor heating throughout the church and church hall, with the retention and relocation of existing radiators in the church to serve as back-up.
Re St. Bartholomew Orford [2024] ECC SEI 1 A confirmatory faculty was granted to regularize the unlawful installation of 6 combination light and heating chandeliers to replace the previous chandeliers and the current oil-fired heating system. The Chancellor was concerned that the new wiring was “deplorable” and granted a faculty, subject to conditions that steps should be taken to mitigate the damage cause by the wiring. [Re St. Bartholomew Orford [2024] ECC SEI 1 [revised]] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. George Brailes [2024] ECC Cov 2 The Parochial Church Council wished to install an oil condenser boiler in a position outside the church which would be screened from view. The Chancellor granted a faculty for 5 years, with liberty to apply at the end of that period for an extension, when consideration would be given as to whether biofuel or an improved electrical supply would be available at that time. [Re St. George Brailes [2024] ECC Cov 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Adderbury [2024] ECC Oxf 4 The Parochial Church Council (PCC) wished to amend a faculty granted in 2023, for the installation of electric heating so as to substitute Near Infrared ‘Couronne’ chandeliers for the Far Infrared ‘Halo’ chandeliers which had been approved. The Chancellor considered that the proposed variation would be a major departure from what had previously been approved and would affect the character of the church as a Grade I listed building of special architectural or historic interest. He accordingly dismissed the petition. [Re St. Mary Adderbury [2024] ECC Oxf 4] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re All Saints Chelsworth [2024] ECC SEI 4 The Petitioners wished to move one of the floodlights installed with faculty permission in 2011 from the South East to the North West corner of the churchyard and to increase the floodlighting from 25 hours a year to approximately 150 hours a year. The Chancellor considered that the petitioners had given no substantive reason for altering the terms of the original faculty and he therefore refused to grant a faculty. [Re All Saints Chelsworth [2024] ECC SEI 4] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Holy Cross Newcastle [2024] ECC New 3 The petitioners sought to replace the existing convection gas heaters with nine new convection gas heaters. The parish had already paid a deposit of £17,000 to the contractor before applying for a faculty, and when the application was made it was clear that the parish had not had “due regard” to the Church of England’s Net Zero policy. The Chancellor acknowledged that to reject the proposals would cause undue further financial problems for the church and a delay in providing a new heating system. He therefore granted a faculty, subject to conditions requiring the parish to enter into a green gas tariff or a separate arrangement with a carbon offsetting scheme and to obtain professional advice about how to make a meaningful contribution to Net Zero. [Re Holy Cross Newcastle [2024] ECC New 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
[2023 judgments] [2022 judgments] [2021 judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [2014 Judgments]
Church Treasures/Sale of Paintings/Loans/Memorials
Re St. John Marchwood [2024] ECC Win 3 A confirmatory faculty was sought for the permanent removal of seven paintings from the east end of the Victorian church and their permanent storage within the church. The Chancellor imposed a further condition that the three central paintings should also be restored and then reinstated. [Re St. John Marchwood [2024] ECC Win 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. James Sutton Cheney [2024] ECC Lei 3 The churchwardens wished to introduce into the churchyard a statue of King Richard III (who is reputed to have attended mass at the church on the eve of the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485), as part of a scheme promoted by a group called Bosworth 1485 to create a 12-mile sculpture trail linking sites connected with the battle. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that there would be minimal harm to the setting of the church. [Re St. James Sutton Cheney [2024] ECC Lei 3] [Top of section] [Top]
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Other
[Top]
[2023 judgments – none] [2022 judgments – none] [2021 judgments – none] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [2014 Judgments] [Top]
- Problems of access [0]
- Family graves [0]
- Unlawful burial [0]
- Errors in burial [10]
- Others [17]
Re Edgewell Cemetery [2023] ECC New 4 The petitioner applied for a faculty to authorise the exhumation of a relative and reinterment in an adjoining grave. The relative had reserved two plots, one for her sister and one for herself. Owing to a mistake, the relative was buried in her sister’s grave. The Chancellor determined that the mistake justified the grant of a faculty for exhumation and reinterment. [Re Edgewell Cemetery [2023] ECC New 4] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. George Fordington [2023] ECC Sal 2 The petitioners wished to have the baby’s ashes interred in the churchyard at Dewlish, where three generations of the baby’s father’s family were buried, and where the petitioners wished to be buried in due course. Following the guidelines in Re Blagden Cemetery [2002] Fam 299, the Chancellor decided that the circumstances did not justify the grant of a faculty for exhumation. [Re St. George Fordington [2023] ECC Sal 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John Seaton Hirst [2024] ECC New 1 A funeral director applied a few days after an interment of ashes for a faculty to authorise their temporary exhumation, as he had overlooked the family’s request that a portion of the ashes should be withheld from interment in the churchyard, in order that they could be interred elsewhere. The Chancellor granted a faculty as the funeral director had acted promptly and his mistake was an exceptional reason to justify exhumation. [Re St. John Seaton Hirst [2024] ECC New 1] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Nicholas Codsall [2023] ECC Lic 2 The petitioner applied on behalf of her mother to have the cremated remains of her father exhumed from his burial plot and reinterred in another plot. The Chancellor considered that a problem had arisen because of an unfortunate mistake as to spacing by those responsible for laying out the plots and he considered therefore that the granting of a faculty was justified. [Re St. Nicholas Codsall [2023] ECC Lic 2] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re Rochdale Cemetery [2024] ECC Man 1 The petitioner’s wife had died in 2019 and had been buried in the grave of her parents in Rochdale Cemetery. The petitioner had hoped to be buried in the same grave, but arguments had subsequently arisen between the petitioner and his wife’s family as to who had a right to be buried in the grave. The Chancellor was satisfied that the petitioner’s wife had wanted to be buried with the petitioner and there had been a mistaken belief by both of them that they would be entitled to be buried together. Faculty granted. [Re Rochdale Cemetery [2024] ECC Man 1] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re William Rudd Wilson, Deceased [2024] ECC Car 1 The Chancellor decided that there were exceptional circumstances justifying the grant of a faculty: there had been a mistake by the petitioner’s father-in-law’s family, in that they had not appreciated the consequences of preventing further interments in plot 126. Also, it was desirable to move the ashes of the petitioner’s father-in-law to plot 563, which was a family plot where the remains of the petitioner’s former mother-in-law and her son had already been interred. [Re William Rudd Wilson, Deceased [2024] ECC Car 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re East Sheen Cemetery [2024] ECC Swk 1 The 16 months old child of Italian parents living in England died following a fall whilst the family were on holiday in the Netherlands. The child’s cremated remains were brought back to England and interred in a consecrated part of East Sheen Cemetery. Upon an application by the parents for exhumation before returning to live in Italy, the Chancellor considered that a mistake had been made which would allow an exception to the normal rule against exhumation and he therefore granted a faculty. [Re East Sheen Cemetery [2024] ECC Swk 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Peter and St. Thomas Stambourne [2023] ECC Chd 4 The petitioner’s son had died in 2022 and his body had been buried in the churchyard at Stambourne. The petitioner claimed that a mistake had been made because the decision was made to inter the deceased in Stambourne because it was expected that his wife and children would be staying in the village, otherwise the deceased would have been buried at Northwood, near his family home. The Chancellor determined that there were insufficient exceptional circumstances to justify exhumation and she therefore refused to grant a faculty. [Re St. Peter & St. Thomas Stambourne [2023] ECC Chd 4] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Mary the Virgin Beech Hill [2024] ECC Oxf 6 The cremated remains of two parishioners had been interred in a double depth grave plot in the churchyard in February 2024. In July 2024, the cremated remains of another parishioner were interred. The Chancellor was satisfied that the mistake as to proximity of the second interment to the first was an exceptional circumstance which justified the grant of a faculty. [Re St. Mary the Virgin Beech Hill [2024] ECC Oxf 6] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Barrowby Burial Ground [2024] ECC Lin 3 Owing to a mistake on the part of the grave digger, the remains of the husband of one of the petitioners had been buried at single depth, whereas a double depth grave had been requested. The Chancellor decided that there were exceptional circumstances to justify the grant of a faculty to allow the existing coffin to be exposed and temporarily moved in order to allow the grave to be dug deeper. [Re Barrowby Burial Ground [2024] ECC Lin 3] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re An Unnamed Burial Ground [2023] ECC Chi 2 The petitioner wished to have her mother’s body exhumed from a consecrated burial ground in the Diocese of Chichester and reinterred in a consecrated burial ground in another diocese. The Chancellor granted a faculty, being satisfied that there were special circumstances and in view of the sensitivity of the matter, the he made the judgment anonymous, requiring that it should not be published until after the exhumation and reinterment had been carried out. [Re An Unnamed Burial Ground [2023] ECC Chi 2] [Post] Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Mary Sledmere [2007] Peter Collier Ch. (York) The petitioner was a world-renowned influenza virologist with a particular interest in the 1918 Spanish Influenza strain, a type of avian influenza. I The prospect of finding a way of combatting the H5N1 virus, which would be of public benefit, was a sufficiently exceptional reason to displace the normal presumption against exhumation. [Re St. Mary Sledmere [2007] Peter Collier Ch. (York)] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
[Note: Normally, only recent judgments which have been added to the Ecclesiastical Law Association web site are circulated. However, this 2007 judgment was circulated in February 2024 as it was considered to be of interest to Chancellors and others, in view of the circumstances in which the application for a faculty was made. The case was reviewed in our post Evidence from the Grave III]
Re An Application for Exhumation [2024] ECC Wor 2 A father and son had died together in 1977 and their ashes had been interred in a public cemetery. The father’s widow applied for a faculty to authorise exhumation of the remains and their reinterment in a private burial ground with a view to creating a family grave. The Chancellor granted a faculty, subject to a condition that the remains of the father and son, after such a long period, could be identified and fully removed. [Re An Application for Exhumation [2024] ECC Wor 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Bognor Regis Town Cemetery [2024] ECC Chi 3 Mr Reid died in March 2023. He had been an avowed atheist all his life and was resolutely opposed to the practice of burial, but because he had lost touch with his family, those responsible for his funeral arranged for him to be buried in Bognor Regis Town Cemetery in the area consecrated for the rites of the Church of England.
In this case, there had been an understandable mistake. The local authority, the funeral directors and the officiant at the burial could not reasonably have known about Mr Reid’s atheism and had acted entirely properly to have his body cremated and to deal with his ashes as they see fit” [20]. [Re Bognor Regis Town Cemetery [2024] ECC Chi 3] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Catcliffe [2023] ECC She 3 The petitioners wished to fulfil their mother’s request before her death that her husband’s ashes to be exhumed following her death and scattered with her own ashes in a favourite place. The Chancellor refused to grant a faculty. There were no sufficiently exceptional circumstances to justify an exhumation, particularly after such a long lapse of time between the two deaths. [Re St. Mary Catcliffe [2023] ECC She 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re William Rudd Wilson, Deceased [2024] ECC Car 1 In 1978, the petitioner’s son, aged 2 years and ten months, had died and had been buried in plot 126 in Whitehaven Cemetery. In 1997, the petitioner’s former father-in-law had died and his family, without the involvement of an undertaker or the burial authority, had interred his ashes by pouring them into a shallow hole in the same plot. It had always been the wish of the petitioner to be buried with his son, but the shallow interment of his former father-in-law’s ashes now prevented this. The petitioner therefore requested permission for his father-in-law’s ashes to be exhumed and reinterred in another plot in the cemetery (Plot 563) owned by the petitioner’s former wife. The burial authority were satisfied that the ashes could be exhumed intact. The Chancellor decided that there were exceptional circumstances justifying the grant of a faculty: there had been a mistake by the petitioner’s father-in-law’s family, in that they had not appreciated the consequences of preventing further interments in plot 126. Also, it was desirable to move the ashes of the petitioner’s father-in-law to plot 563, which was a family plot where the remains of the petitioner’s former mother-in-law and her son had already been interred. [Re William Rudd Wilson, Deceased [2024] ECC Car 1][Top of section] [Top of post]
Re An Application for the Exhumation of the Mortal Remains of RM [2024] ECC Wor 5 In 1984 the cremated remains of RM were interred in a churchyard. RM’s widow died in 2022 or 2023, and her cremated remains were still retained by her daughter. The daughter now wished to scatter the remains of both parents under a tree in her garden, in order to fulfil the wishes of her mother. Following the guidelines in Re Blagdon Cemetery [2002] Fam 299, Court of Arches, the Chancellor could not find any special circumstances that made this case sufficiently ‘exceptional’ to permit an exception to the rule of permanence of burial. [Re An Application for the Exhumation of the Mortal Remains of RM [2024] ECC Wor 5] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Michael and All Angels Lilleshall [2024] ECC Lic 1 The petitioner was granted permission to have the remains of her father, who died in 2012, exhumed and cremated and his ashes then taken for interment in a family grave in a consecrated Roman Catholic cemetery in Santa Ana in El Salvador, where he had been born and where almost all his remaining relatives lived. [Re St. Michael & All Angels Lilleshall [2024] ECC Lic 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St Michael Horton [2024] ECC Oxf 3 An application had been made to set aside a partially executed faculty for exhumation and reinterment of cremated remains. The application was made after the exhumation of the cremated remains, but before their intended reinterment in a family grave in a parish in Northern Ireland where the deceased had been born. The Chancellor decided to dismiss the application to set aside the faculty, in order that the deceased’s remains could be interred next to his father’s remains in Northern Ireland. [Re St Michael Horton [2024] ECC Oxf 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Bingham Cemetery [2024] ECC S&N 1 The petitioner wished to have her husband’s cremated remains exhumed from a consecrated part of Bingham Cemetery and reinterred in the churchyard at Stoke Bardolph (some 8 miles away). The Chancellor granted a faculty, subject to either the deceased having a legal right to burial in Stoke Bardolph (having died in the parish or having been on the electoral roll) or, if not, subject to the incumbent reviewing her earlier decision and allowing the reinterment. [Re Bingham Cemetery [2024] ECC S&N 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Astwood Cemetery [2024] ECC Wor 4 The petitioners, who were Romanian nationals and Christians, were living in Worcester when their child was tragically stillborn in 2020. The child’s remains were interred in Astwood Cemetery. The petitioners subsequently moved back to Romania, to live near their extended families. The Chancellor determined that this was an exceptional case where exhumation should be allowed. [Re Astwood Cemetery [2024] ECC Wor 4] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Margaret Ormesby [2024] ECC Nor 5 This is an anonymized judgment. In 2014, Baby A was buried in the grave of his paternal grandfather in the churchyard of St. Margaret Ormesby. His parents, his mother B and father C, had subsequently separated after a difficult relationship. The Chancellor granted a faculty, but subject to reburial in the churchyard of St. Michael Ormesby. [Re St. Margaret Ormesby [2024] ECC Nor 5] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St Laurence Ansley [2024] ECC Cov 3 The petitioner sought exhumation of the cremated remains of her late husband, which had been interred in Ansley churchyard in 2015, and reinterment in Hartshill Cemetery, citing dissatisfaction with the upkeep of the churchyard and difficulty of access to the grave. The Chancellor determined that there were no exceptional circumstances in this petition to justify the grant of a faculty. [Re St Laurence Ansley [2024] ECC Cov 3] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re Brookwood Cemetery (No. 2) [2024] ECC Gui 3 In June 2023, the Deputy Chancellor of the Diocese had refused a faculty for exhumation from Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey and reinterment in the churchyard in Conistone in Yorkshire, where the family had lived for 200 years. The current petition sought to set aside the previous decision (under Rule 20.3(1)(a)) and again request a faculty. The Chancellor considered that it was appropriate in the circumstances to grant a faculty. [Re Brookwood Cemetery (No. 2) [2024] ECC Gui 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Peter Aubourn [2024] ECC Lin 1 The petitioners sought exhumation of the cremated remains of a relative and reinterment at a higher elevation in the same churchyard, as the area for cremated remains had become waterlogged and difficult to access. The Chancellor decided that there were exceptional circumstances to justify the grant of a faculty. [Re St. Peter Aubourn [2024] ECC Lin 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Canwick Cemetery [2024] ECC Lin 4 The petitioner, whose family was in China, sought a faculty to permit the exhumation of the remains of her husband, which had been interred in Canwick Cemetery, so that they could be cremated and the ashes transported to and reinterred near the graves of relatives in a cemetery in Shenzhen in China. The Chancellor was satisfied that exceptional reasons existed for an exhumation to be permitted. [Re Canwick Cemetery [2024] ECC Lin 4] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Oswald Crowle [2024] ECC Lin 6 The petitioner wished to exhume from the churchyard the ashes of her father, who had died in 1991, and to reinter the ashes in Crowle Cemetery, where the ashes of the petitioner’s recently departed mother were to be interred. The Chancellor was satisfied that exceptional reasons existed in this case for an exhumation to be permitted. [Re St. Oswald Crowle [2024] ECC Lin 6] [Top of section] [Top of post].
[2023 judgments] [2022 judgments] [2021 judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [2014 Judgments]
- Development of churchyard [3]
- Designation of closed churchyard [8]
- Churchyard Regulations [25]
- Reservation of grave space [7]
- Trees [3]
- Environmental Permit [1]
Re Christ Church Spitalfields [2024] ECC Lon 2 The Rector and Parochial Church Council wished to enter into a management agreement with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, under Section 6 of the Open Spaces Act 1906, in respect of certain parts of the closed churchyard of Christ Church Spitalfields, which adjoins Christ Church Primary School. This judgment resolved certain preliminary legal issues, including whether the court had the jurisdiction to decide and grant the petition sought by the Petitioners. (The Chancellor determined the petition in his subsequent judgment: [Re Christ Church Spitalfields [2024] ECC Lon 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Christ Church Spitalfields [2024] ECC Lon 3 The Rector and Parochial Church Council wished to enter into a management agreement with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, under Section 6 of the Open Spaces Act 1906, in respect of certain parts of the closed churchyard of Christ Church Spitalfields, which adjoins Christ Church Primary School. The petitioners had amended the petition by omitting references to certain parts of the closed churchyard adjoining the school. The Chancellor granted a faculty to authorise the completion of a management agreement limited to the parts of the closed churchyard specified in the amended petition. [Re Christ Church Spitalfields [2024] ECC Lon 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. German’s Cathedral Peel [2024] EC Sodor 2 This was an application for a retrospective faculty for the installation of a series of sculptures in 14 gardens created in the cathedral grounds under the authority of a faculty in 2012. The Vicar General had to consider (inter alia) whether it was appropriate to have a sculpture of an identifiable living individual within the precincts of the cathedral. He granted a faculty for all of the statues. [Re St. German’s Cathedral Peel [2024] EC Sodor 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Designation of closed churchyard
Re All Saints Stretton-on-Dunsmore [2023] ECC Cov 2 The petitioner wished to have erected on her husband’s grave a headstone including the design of three stylised heraldic lions, as her husband had a tattoo of three lions. In the absence of permission from the Crown to use the design, the Chancellor refused to permit the design on the headstone. However, he did permit the inscription on the headstone to include the deceased’s nickname and the words ‘Husband, Dad and Grandad’. [Re All Saints Stretton-on-Dunsmore [2023] ECC Cov 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Peter Terwick [2023] ECC Chi 3 The petitioner wished to erect a memorial over the grave of his late wife. The incumbent, Parochial Church Council and churchwardens raised 11 objections, but did not wish to be parties opponent. After a site visit and an informal hearing with the petitioner, the incumbent and a churchwarden, the Chancellor indicated that he was minded to allow the memorial and would give detailed reasons in a written judgment. [Re St. Peter Terwick [2023] ECC Chi 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Lawrence Toot Baldon [2023] ECC Oxf 10 The petitioner had obtained the approval of the Team Vicar to the laying of a ledger stone in memory of his wife on the grave. The stone was not one which was authorised under the churchyard regulations, which the Team Vicar had failed to appreciate. The Chancellor decided (“Not without some hesitation …”) to allow the stone to remain, as the petitioner had “the full support of the minister, the churchwardens, the PCC, the DAC, and the petitioner’s family, and for powerful pastoral considerations”. [Re St. Lawrence Toot Baldon [2023] ECC Oxf 10] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Chad Kirkby [2023] ECC Liv 5 A memorial comprising a headstone and a ledger stone had been installed in the churchyard without the prior knowledge of the Team Rector, following the interment of a fourth member of the family in the same grave. The Chancellor otherwise granted a faculty. He considered that the stonemason had been remiss in not advising the family that they should have applied for a faculty for a memorial outside the regulations and should therefore meet the cost of removal of the photograph and the football club emblems. [Re St Chad Kirkby [2023] Ecc Liv 5] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Mary Denver [2023] Ely 5 The Chancellor had previously refused permission for a polished green granite memorial stone. The petitioner had responded with a letter expressing disappointment at the Chancellor’s decision. This judgment contains the Chancellor’s reasons for his decision to refuse permission for the type of stone requested. [Re St. Mary Denver [2023] Ely 5] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re All Saints Childwall [2023] ECC Liv 4 The proposal was to move a war memorial from the church porch and reposition it on a wall at the west end of the church in order to protect it from the elements in the open porch. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty. [Re All Saints Childwall [2023] ECC Liv 4] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Andrew Kinson [2024] ECC Sal 3 The petitioner applied for a confirmatory faculty in respect of a memorial which had been installed in the churchyard, but with features outside the current Churchyards Regulations. For pastoral reasons, however, the Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty, but subject to conditions that all coloured paint should be removed from the memorial and that numerous personal artefacts on the grave should be removed within three months and should not at any time be replaced with others. [Re St. Andrew Kinson [2024] ECC Sal 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Luke Chelsea [2024] ECC Lon 3 To celebrate the centenary of the birth of the late sculptor Sir Eduardo Paolozzi (1924-2005), it was proposed to erect in the Dovehouse Green public gardens in Chelsea his 2m high sculpture depicting the head of Oscar Wilde. The Chancellor rejected the arguments of the objector and granted a faculty. [Re St. Luke Chelsea [2024] ECC Lon 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. James Ravenfield [2024] ECC She 1 The Petitioner sought permission retrospectively for a wooden surround and blue slate chippings installed without permission and contrary to the diocesan churchyards rules on a grave containing the remains of his grandparents. The Chancellor determined that there was no proper basis on which to permit a faculty. She therefore dismissed the petition and authorised the Parochial Church Council to remove the wooden surround and blue slate chippings. [Re St. James Ravenfield [2024] ECC She 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re Holy Trinity Kingswood [2020] ECC Bri 2 The petitioner sought permission for a memorial consisting of an upright stone and a horizontal slab to mark a family grave containing four interments. This type of memorial was not within the current churchyards regulations, but there were other graves with memorials of this type in the churchyard. The Chancellor considered that it was only equitable in the circumstances to grant a faculty. [Re Holy Trinity Kingswood [2020] ECC Bri 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Shotesham [2024] ECC Nor 4 The petitioner wished to introduce into the churchyard a memorial to her late husband; the design of the stone included a Star of David symbol. The Chancellor determined that religious symbols other than a Christian cross should not ordinarily be allowed in a churchyard and refused to grant a faculty permitting the Star of David symbol. [Re St. Mary Shotesham [2024] ECC Nor 4] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re An Application to Inter Cremated Remains [2024] ECC Oxf 2 Two sisters of a man who had recently died wished, in accordance with his alleged wishes, to have his ashes interred in the grave of his former wife. The Chancellor refused to grant a faculty because the interment of the deceased’s ashes in the grave of the his late wife “would become a cause of distress or conflict, or a focus of grievance, between family members, and those attending to mourn at [his late wife’s] graveside.” [Re An Application to Inter Cremated Remains [2024] ECC Oxf 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Newton with Flowery Field [2024] ECC Chr 1 A child, aged 6, died in December 2023 and her body was interred in the churchyard. Due to a number of misunderstandings, the child’s parents ordered a memorial the current churchyard regulations. They subsequently applied for a faculty to authorise it. The Chancellor granted a faculty on pastoral and practical grounds. [Re St. Mary Newton with Flowery Field [2024] ECC Chr 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. James Norton Canes [2024] ECC Lic 3 The petitioner wished to erect in the churchyard a memorial to her parents and proposed two alternative designs. The Chancellor decided that the memorial designs were outside the range of what was appropriate to the location and refused to grant a faculty for either design but, if the petitioner wished, a faculty would be granted for the memorial without the angel and the wings [Re St. James Norton Canes [2024] ECC Lic 3] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Fawkham [2024] ECC Roc 1 The Petitioner wished to install a memorial in the churchyard in memory of his late wife. The proposed memorial was a headstone and kerbs, the proposed stone being polished paradiso granite, described as “a swirling mixture of pink, grey, red and black colours in a strongly-defined tortoiseshell-type pattern.” The Chancellor granted a faculty to allow a headstone of paradiso granite, provided that the stone had a matt finish, but he refused to permit the installation of kerbs. [Re St. Mary Fawkham [2024] ECC Roc 1] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. John Dudley Wood [2024] ECC Wor 6 An application for a memorial was refused by the priest-in-charge, as it was outside the churchyards regulations as regards the proposal to include a photograph of the deceased. The applicant was advised to apply for a faculty. The stonemasons subsequently installed the memorial, including a photographic plaque, without the authority of a faculty. An application was made for a confirmatory faculty. The Chancellor granted a faculty allowing the photograph to remain for a period of 18 years, the life expectancy of the applicant plus 3 years, after which the photograph must be removed. The Chancellor stated that the stonemasons were at fault in not being aware of the restrictions against photographs in the churchyards regulations and installing a memorial without lawful authority. She directed that a special citation be issued to join the stonemasons as a party with a view to issuing an order for the costs of the faculty application to be paid by them. [Re St. John Dudley Wood [2024] ECC Wor 6] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary Catcliffe [2024] ECC She 6 The petitioner applied for permission to install in the churchyard a memorial to her paternal grandparents. The Chancellor granted a faculty subject to conditions that (a) the names of all the deceased’s children and grandchildren should be mentioned in the inscription or none and (b) the poppy design to be engraved into the memorial should be limited to an outline in the same colour as the rest of the engravings. [Re St. Mary Catcliffe [2024] ECC She 6] [Post] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Paul Fazeley [2024] ECC Lic 4 The petitioner applied for a faculty to reserve a grave in the churchyard for his father, who had lived in the parish for many years. The parish policy was that applications from residents would automatically be supported. In July 2024, there were approximately 100 graves spaces available for an average of 5.8 burials per year. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty, but limited it to a period of 15 years, with permission for the petitioner to apply for an extension of the period within 6 months of its expiry. [Re St. Paul Fazeley [2024] ECC Lic 4] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Paul Fazeley5 [2024] ECC Lic 5 The petitioners, a couple aged 77 and 76 and resident in the parish, wished to reserve a grave space in the churchyard for 50 years. The parish policy was that applications from residents would automatically be supported. In July 2024, there were approximately 100 graves spaces available for an average of 5.8 burials per year. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty. [Re St. Paul Fazeley [2024] ECC Lic 5] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Lawrence Stoak [2024] ECC Chr 2* The petitioners applied for a confirmatory faculty to retain in the churchyard a memorial to a member of the family. The memorial had been installed without permission and did not comply with the churchyard regulations. The Parochial Church Council did not support the petition, as they had in recent times been striving to make sure that the churchyards regulations were complied with, notwithstanding breaches in the past. The Chancellor determined that the petitioners had failed to provide a sufficient justification for retaining the memorial, or for displacing the parish’s desire to uphold the regulations, and he therefore refused to grant a faculty and ordered that the stone should be removed. [Re St. Lawrence Stoak [2024] ECC Chr 2] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. James Newchapel [2012] Lichfield Cons. Ct., Eyre Ch The petitioner wished to place a memorial to her late brother on the family grave in which his cremated remains had been interred. The Chancellor refused to allow a wedge shaped stone, but said that in the circumstances he would permit “a 12” cube in polished black granite and bearing the proposed words in gold lettering”. [Re St. James Newchapel [2012] Lichfield Cons. Ct., Eyre Ch] [Top of section] [Top of post]
[Note: This was the only judgment referred to in the Ecclesiastical Judges Association Review of “non-standard cases” that had not been covered previously by L&RUK].
Re St. John the Evangelist Rownhams [2024] ECC Win 4 An application was made for a book-shaped memorial which had features outside the churchyards regulations. The Chancellor determined that the memorial would cause only very limited harm to the churchyard and listed church building and he granted a faculty, subject to conditions. [Re St. John the Evangelist Rownhams [2024] ECC Win 4] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Mary the Virgin Weston Turville [2024] ECC Oxf 8 The petitioner wished to have a cross and a Star of David on a memorial to her late husband. The Chancellor considered two previous decisions of consistory courts in other dioceses and in the present case decided to grant a faculty. [Re St. Mary the Virgin Weston Turville [2024] ECC Oxf 8] [Post][Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St Guthlac Market Deeping [2024] ECC Lin 2 The Chancellor granted a faculty to authorise the refurbishment of the kerbs surrounding the petitioner’s grandparents’ grave, the removal of a self-seeded tree from the middle of the grave and an additional inscription in memory of the petitioner’s father, whose remains had been interred elsewhere. [Re St Guthlac Market Deeping [2024] ECC Lin 2] [Top of section] [Top of post].
Re St. Andrew Rippingdale [2024] ECC Lin 5 Notwithstanding that the incumbent had advised a firm of stonemasons that a faculty would be required, the firm commenced extensive works of restoration of a memorial – the existing headstone and kerb had been removed and there was a large concrete slab installed, all without permission. The Chancellor granted a faculty but asked the stonemasons to undertake a review of the training they give to masons about the Churchyard Regulations and the delegated authority given to the clergy to authorise memorials, and the requirement for faculties granted by Archdeacons or the Chancellor for other works in the churchyard. [Re St. Andrew Rippingale [2024] ECC Lin 5, Revised] [Top of section] [Top of post]
Re St. Leodegar Hunston [2023] ECC Chi 1 The Chancellor refused to grant faculties for the reservation of two separate grave spaces in the churchyard, notwithstanding that the applicants had connections with the church; the remaining spaces must be filled by those with a right of burial/strong connection with the church in the order in which they die, until the churchyard becomes full. [Re St. Leodegar Hunston [2023] ECC Chi 1] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Wilfrid Standish [2024] ECC Bla 1 The petitioners, residents of the parish for 58 years and with many relatives buried in the churchyard, wished to reserve a grave space for 25 years. The Deputy Chancellor concluded that there was no sufficient justification for the Court to take the exceptional course of allowing a reservation when there was only space for burials for an estimated period of 18 to 24 months. [Re St. Wilfrid Standish [2024] ECC Bla 1] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Paul Caton-with-Littledale [2024] ECC Bla 2 The petitioner, who had lived in the parish all his life, wished to reserve a grave space in the churchyard for 25 years. The Chancellor decided, in view of the petitioner’s life expectancy being 7-10 years, owing to paralysis following an accident, and for pastoral reasons, to grant a faculty reserving a grave for a period of 7 years. [Re St. Paul Caton-with-Littledale [2024] ECC Bla 2] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Peter Hilton [2024] ECC Yor 1 A couple who had lived in the village for 46 years each applied to reserve a grave space. The Parochial Church Council had previously adopted and applied a policy of not supporting the reservation of grave spaces in view of the limited number of spaces left available. The Chancellor refused to grant faculties. [Re St. Peter Hilton [2024] ECC Yor 1] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. James the Great Radley [2024] ECC Oxf 5 The petitioner wished to reserve a grave next to the grave of her late husband in the churchyard at Radley. The Chancellor granted a faculty, even though it was estimated that there was only sufficient space in the churchyard for burials within the next three years. The petitioner had resided in the parish for over 50 years, and her family had strong connections with the church, and many members of the family were buried in the churchyard. [Re St. James the Great Radley [2024] ECC Oxf 5] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. James the Great Radley [2024] ECC Oxf 7 In August 2024, the Chancellor had granted a faculty for the reservation of a grave space for a Mrs. Bowers, even though there were only enough graves left for the next three years. At the same time the application, a Mrs. Parke had applied to reserve a grave next to the grave of her husband, but the processing of her application had been delayed for various reasons.
The Chancellor decided in the circumstances it would not be appropriate to treat Mrs. Parke’s application other than in the same way as Mrs. Bower’s application, and he therefore granted a faculty, subject (inter alia) to a condition requiring the PCC to pass a resolution not to support any further grave space reservations. [Re St. James the Great Radley [2024] ECC Oxf 7] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Michael and All Angels Hoole [2024] ECC Bla 4 The petitioner’s husband had died and was buried in the old part of the churchyard in 2020. In 2021, the petitioner applied for a faculty to reserve the adjoining grave space for her two sons, intending that the two graves would form a double family grave. She subsequently withdrew the petition. Notwithstanding the PCC resolution, and for the reasons stated in the judgment, the Chancellor granted a faculty for the reservation of the grave exclusively for the petitioner, conditional upon the petitioner first removing the kerbs and stones and re-grassing the area at her own expense. [Re St. Michael & All Angels Hoole [2024] ECC Bla 4] [Top of section] [Top of page]
Re All Saints Isley Walton [2023] ECC Lei 4 Following a complaint in 2022 from a local resident, the former Chancellor proceeded to determine whether two trees felled in the churchyard with the approval of the archdeacon should have been the subject of a faculty application. She decided that the felling of the first tree was permissible with the archdeacon’s approval (and she granted a retrospective faculty), but that the felling of the second tree should have required a faculty, Re All Saints Isley Walton [2022] ECC Lei 1. In this judgment in 2022, the former Chancellor required expert reports as to how to deal with the two tree stumps, a recommendation as to the planting of replacement trees and advice on the effect of the stumps on the nearby wall and memorials. In the 2023 judgment, the Deputy Chancellor considered the reports that had been submitted and requested further reports from the Parochial Church Council and the church architect before any further action. [Re All Saints Isley Walton [2023] ECC Lei 4] [Top of section] [Top of page].
Re St. Kenelm Upper Snodsbury [2001] Worcester Const. Ct., Mynors Ch. The Chancellor granted a faculty to authorise the felling of a sycamore tree. He set out the legal and practical aspects which should be taken into account when determining an application to remove a tree from a churchyard. [Re St. Kenelm Upper Snodsbury [2001] Charles Mynors Ch. (Worcester)[Top of section] [Top of page].
[Note: This is the first consistory judgment since the changes to the 2000 Rules which recognized that petitions relating to works to trees were quite different from those relating to building works and provides a special procedure accordingly [2]]
[See also Re St Guthlac Market Deeping [2024] ECC Lin 2 in which the Petitioner sought inter alia the removal of a self-seeded tree from the middle of the grave.]
[Top of section] [Top of page].
Allington Parochial Church Council: environmental permit application, NG32 2EA, Advertisement – EPR/HB3649KM/A001: 0.183 cubic metres per day; trench arch system; SK 85528 40271.
[2023 judgments] [2022 judgments] [2021 judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [2014 Judgments]
Re St. Anne Stanley [2024] ECC Liv 2 The proposal was to replace the church organ’s current tuba rank with the rank from the redundant organ at St Elphin’s Church Warrington, which would be on a long-term loan, and also to install a small booster chest. The Deputy Chancellor granted a faculty. [Re St. Anne Stanley [2024] ECC Liv 2] [Top pf section] [Top of post]
[2023 judgment] [2022 judgments] [2021] judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2015 Judgments] [2014 Judgments] [Top]
See also:
- Re St. Bartholomew Lower Sapey [2024] ECC Wor 3
- Re St. Mary Almeley [2024] ECC Her 1.
[2023 judgment] [2022 judgments] [2021 judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [Top]
[2023 judgments – none] [2022 judgments] [2021 judgments] [2020 judgments] [2019 judgments] [2018 judgments] [2017 judgments] [2016 Judgments] [2015 Judgments] [Top]
Re St. Mary the Virgin Morpeth [2024] ECC New 2 The petition sought permission for the filming inside the church of a scene for a film entitled ‘28 Years Later’, portraying “a post-apocalyptic world in which people are largely infected by a ‘rage’ virus which leads them to violence”. The Chancellor refused to grant a faculty. There is an appendix to the judgment regarding the costs of the proceedings. [Re St. Mary the Virgin Morpeth [2024] ECC New 2] [Post] [Top]
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: St Stythians New Churchyard, Stithians, Truro, Cornwall; St Michael and All Angels Churchyard, Stoke St Michaels, Somerset; St John the Divine Church Churchyard, Menston, Ilkley, West Yorkshire.
- Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: St Anne’s Churchyard, Ambleside, Cumbria.
- Burial Act 1855 (Variation) Order varying two Orders dated 8th February 1855 and 28th February 1855 prohibiting further burials in the Churchyard of St Mary & St Eanswythe, Folkestone, Kent,
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On 21 February 2021, His Majesty held a Privy Council in Buckingham Palace at which “In the exercise of His powers under section 1 of the Burial Act 1855, by and with the advice of His Privy Council, is pleased to order as follows:- Notwithstanding anything in the Orders in Council made under the Burial Acts 1853 and 1855 on 8th February 1855 and varied on 28th February 1855 directing the discontinuance of burials in the Churchyard of St Mary & St Eanswythe, Folkestone, Kent, an exception be added that the burial may be allowed of the late Master William Brown within the Churchyard”.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): An Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in St Mary’s Churchyard, Swillington, Leeds, West Yorkshire, (35).
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: in Tottenham Park Cemetery, Dodsley Place, Montagu Rd, London N9 0HU.
- Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: 1. St Stythians New Churchyard, Stithians, Truro, Cornwall; 2. St Michael and All Angels Churchyard, Stoke St Michaels, Somerset; 3. St John the Divine Church Churchyard, Menston, Ilkley, West Yorkshire.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: St Mary Magdalene Churchyard, Hatfield Hyde, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire; Holy Trinity Churchyard, Freckleton, Lancashire; and St John the Baptist Churchyard, Donhead St Mary, Shaftesbury, Dorset.
- Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: St Mary’s Churchyard, Swillington, Leeds, West Yorkshire.
Also three Orders approving Statutes of: University of Cambridge; Clare Hall, Cambridge; and Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. The Statutes of latter two included inter alia changes to the use of pronouns.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: St James the Great Church Churchyard, Ruscombe, Wokingham, Berkshire; and Great St Mary’s Church of England Churchyard, Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire.
- Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: St Mary Magdalene Churchyard, Hatfield Hyde, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire; Holy Trinity Churchyard, Freckleton, Lancashire; and St John the Baptist Churchyard, Donhead St Mary, Shaftesbury, Dorset.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: St Mary’s Church Churchyard, Wisbech St Mary, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire; Church of St Lawrence Churchyard, Swindon Village, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; Immanuel Church Churchyard, Oswaldtwistle, Accrington, Lancashire; and St Mary’s Churchyard, Cholsey, Oxfordshire.
- Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: St James the Great Church Churchyard, Ruscombe, Wokingham, Berkshire; and Great St Mary’s Church of England Churchyard, Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire.
- Burial Act 1855 (Variation) Order varying an Order dated 9th July 2008 prohibiting further burials in the Churchyard of Holy Trinity Churchyard, Bardsley, Oldham, Manchester.
“Notwithstanding anything in the Order in Council made under the Burial Act 1853 on 9th July 2008, directing the discontinuance of burials in the Churchyard of Holy Trinity Churchyard, Bardsley, Oldham, Manchester, an exception be added in that the human remains of Mr John Andrew Partington and Mrs Patricia Partington, may be interred within a burial ground of Holy Trinity, Oldham in the diocese of Manchester”.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: St Mawnan Parish Church Churchyard, Falmouth, Truro, Cornwall; St Mary the Virgin Church Churchyard, Woodford Halse, Northamptonshire; St Julian’s Churchyard, Rectory Road, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex; Gaydon St Giles Church, Churchyard, Gaydon, Warwickshire.
- ARCHBISHOPRIC OF CANTERBURY Order declaring vacant the Archbishopric of Canterbury with effect from the seventh day of January 2025.
- Burial Act 1853 (Notice): Order giving notice of the discontinuance of burials in: Holy Trinity Church, Graveyard 3, Bolton-Le-Sands, Lancashire; All Saints Church Churchyard, Kirkbymoorside, York, North
Yorkshire; St Paul’s Church Churchyard, Halesowen, Birmingham, West Midlands; St Barnabas Churchyard, Easterton, Wiltshire; St Mary’s Church Churchyard, Broughton, Hampshire; St Peter’s Churchyard, Navenby, Lincoln, Lincolnshire. - Burial Act 1853 (Final) Order prohibiting further burials in: St Mary’s Church Churchyard, Wisbech St Mary, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire; Church of St Lawrence Churchyard, Swindon Village, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; St Mary’s Churchyard, Cholsey, Oxfordshire; St Mawnan Parish Church Churchyard, Falmouth, Truro, Cornwall; St Mary the Virgin Church Churchyard, Woodford Halse, Northamptonshire; St Julian’s Churchyard, Rectory Road, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex; Gaydon St Giles Church Churchyard, Gaydon, Warwickshire.
CDM Decisions and Safeguarding
Clergy Discipline Commission: Annual Report 2024, (17 June 2024).
CDM Decisions
Written determinations of disciplinary tribunals hearing complaints brought under the CDM, together with any decisions on penalty are published by the Church of England; included are judgments from the Arches Court of Canterbury and the Chancery Court of York where determinations have been appealed. The majority of complaints that are made under the CDM are resolved by the bishop, archbishop, or President of Tribunals, without having to convene a tribunal.
The Revd F – October 2024: Decision, (October 2024).
The Revd Canon David Tudor – October 2024: Decision, (October 2024).
The Revd Geoffrey Baulcomb: Preliminary Rulings, (24 June 2024); Decision, (28 August 2024).
The Revd Canon Richard Peers – March 2024: Decision | Ruling on Code of Practice para. 309
Penalties by consent
A new policy came into force on 24 October 2022 although there is a potential lacuna for cases where the penalty was imposed after the change in the Code of Practice, paragraph 312, but before this date, as with The Right Reverend Peter Hullah. The page on the CofE website Penalties by Consent records the penalties that have been imposed by a bishop or archbishop with the consent of the respondent under section 16 of the Clergy Discipline Measure 2003 and penalties that have been imposed under section 30 or 31.
Name: The Revd Joseph Oyinlade Itunu OLADIPO
Diocese: Oxford
Date imposed: 13 December 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: s.8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Rebuke and injunction
Name: The Revd Timothy (Tim) Charles STANFORD
Diocese: Southwell and Nottingham
Date imposed: 6th November 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: s.8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Prohibition for Life (with effect from 18th November 2024)
Name: The Revd CHRISTOPHER PENFOLD
Diocese: Canterbury
Date imposed: 25 August 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(d) – conduct unbecoming or inappropriate to the office and work of a clerk in Holy Orders.
Penalty: Removal from office and prohibition from exercising any of the functions of his Orders for 4 years (with effect from 8 August 2024)
Name: The Right Revd TIMOTHY LIVINGSTONE AMBOKO WAMBUNYA
Diocese: Oxford
Date imposed: 9th October 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(a) Doing any act in contravention of the laws ecclesiastical & 8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming to the office and work of a Clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Rebuke and injunction
Name: The Revd RICHARD MARTIN
Diocese: Gloucester
Date imposed: 2nd October 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Rebuke and injunction
Name: The Ven MICHAEL JOSEPH PATRICK McGURK
Diocese: Manchester
Date imposed: 3rd October 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Rebuke
Name: The Revd SIMON FRANK BETTERIDGE
Diocese: Coventry
Date imposed: 20th August 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(d) Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Rebuke and injunction
Name: The Revd STEPHEN ANTHONY MANGAR
Diocese: Guildford
Date imposed: 27th June 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Removal from office & limited prohibition for 2 years (with effect from 25th June 2024)
Name: The Revd BRIAN JEFFERY HIBBERD
Diocese: St Albans
Date imposed: 23rd June 2024
Relevant CDM section: 8(1)(d)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Limited prohibition for 4 years (with effect from 23rd June 2024)
Name: The Revd Canon ANNE RUSSELL
Diocese: Leeds
Date imposed: 14th June 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: 8(1)(aa) Failing to comply with a requirement imposed by the code under section 5A of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016
Penalty: Injunction
Name: The Revd IAN WHITTLE
Diocese: Norwich
Date imposed: 4th June 2024
Relevant CDM section: 30(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Removal from Office (until August 2024)
Name: The Revd DANIEL LANGDON-GRIFFITHS
Diocese: Liverpool
Date imposed: 23rd Feb 2024
Relevant CDM section: 8(1)(d)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Removal from office and revocation of licence & rebuke (with effect from 1st March 2024)
Name: The Ven PAUL THOMAS
Diocese: Lichfield
Date imposed: 27th February 2024
Relevant CDM section: 8(1)(d)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Resignation from office & limited prohibition for 3 years (with effect from 27th February 2024)
The Revd ROGER JOHN DRIVER
Diocese: Bath and Wells
Date imposed: 12 January 2024
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: s.8(1)(c): Neglect or inefficiency in the performance of the duties of his office
Penalty: Rebuke and injunction
Name: The Revd STEPHEN JONATHAN HALLETT
Diocese: Oxford
Date imposed: 28th December 2023
Relevant CDM section: 8(1)(d)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Limited Prohibition for 2 years (with effect from 31st January 2024)
Name: The Revd ROBERT ALEXANDER SLATER-CARR
Diocese: Southwark
Date imposed: 19th December 2023
Relevant CDM section: 16(1)
Statutory Ground of Misconduct: Conduct unbecoming & inappropriate to the office & work of a clerk in Holy Orders
Penalty: Limited prohibition for 1 year and 8 months (with effect from 5th January 2024)
Employment Tribunals
Safeguarding
- Scolding Review: Actions and Recommendations. The Diocese of St Albans has published its action plan in response to the Independent Review into Soul Survivor led by Fiona Scolding KC, following its initial response of 26 September 2024. This includes a series of changes to be implemented within the Diocese, alongside recommendations for the wider Church of England.
- Jan Pickles: The Caldey Island Review: Review into allegations of non-recent childhood sexual abuse within the monastic community of Caldey Abbey on Caldey Island, Pembrokeshire, (1 December 2024).
- Statement on complaint against Mike Pilavachi, (18 January 2024).
- Update to Smyth Review, (17 January 2024).
- South Yorkshire Police: Priest summonsed over multiple non-recent sexual offences in Sheffield. (1 February 2024). [Note: At the time of writing, this was an on-going action on which we noted that comment, if any, should be through official channels].
Diocese of Truro, (2 July 2024).
- Independent Safeguarding Audit – The Diocese of Truro and Truro Cathedral
- Full Audit Report
- Diocese of Truro Safeguarding Report Booklet
Diocese of Sheffield (1 July 2024).
Reports from the Independent Reviewer
Individual Reports from the Independent Reviewer are to be found at House of Bishops’ Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests (Independent Reviewer), scroll down.
- Submission by Women and the Church (WATCH) regarding the appointment of Diocesan Bishop, [Post on Press Release], (11 April 2024)
The dates of the Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England may be found by scrolling down to the bottom of the page Cathedrals Fabric Commission. The programme for 2024 is here and the next meeting will be on Thursday 1 February.
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Winchester Cathedral Chapter Statement on Bishop Mounstephen’s Review Winchester Cathedral welcomes Bishop Mounstephen’s Review. We are committed to fully engaging in the process, which will be conducted for the Bishop by an independent third party.
We appreciate the Bishop’s support and share a desire to quickly understand and address any concerns related to our culture, management, or governance — particularly in light of the recent concerns around the management of the much-loved choral tradition. We recognise that trust in the Cathedral’s leadership is essential for a healthy and flourishing church and see a review as an opportunity to work towards that end goal.
With the news of his resignation, we also want to thank Mark Byford for his dedicated service as Senior Non-Executive Member of Chapter at Winchester Cathedral over the past seven years. His contribution to the Cathedral has been invaluable. We wish him every blessing for the future and will soon share plans to ensure we can honour his contribution. (20 June 2024).
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Jurisdiction: Schemes of the Church Commissioners under Pastoral Measure 1983
All Saints Spring Park Parochial Church Council v the Church, Case ID: JCPC 2021/0114
See also: The Independent, Decision to dissolve black female deacon’s parish is ‘indirectly discriminatory’, 27 February 2024.
Recent summaries of specific issues that have been considered in the consistory courts include:
Procedure
- Forms of Objection in Faculty Proceedings, (30 January 2024).
- “Sufficient interest” in faculty petitions – II, (25 January 2024).
- “Sufficient interest” in faculty petitions, (15 January 2024).
Reordering, extensions and other building works
- Proposed demolition of St Paul’s Truro, (7 November 2024).
- Floodlit churches – a recent judgment, (6 September 2024).
- Illegal disposal of pews: Church of St Michael, Bath, Twerton-on-Avon, (18 June 2024).
- An unfortunate sequence of events: Re St Bartholomew Bristol, (21 May 2024),
- “What lies beneath?” – the dilemmas raised by wall paintings, (19 January 2024),
- Disputed altar frontal: St Nicholas Leicester, (20 February 2024).
- “Sufficient interest” in faculty petitions – II, (25 January 2024).
Exhumation
- Captain Matthew Flinders – a legal history, (12 July 2024).
Churchyards
- Statement on BBC File on 4 on abuse by David Tudor, (16 December 2024).
- Appointment of CNC Chair for Canterbury, (16 December 2024).
- Soul Survivor – Actions and Recommendations, (13 December 2024).
- Parochial Fees Church in Wales 2025, (9 December 2024).
- Church of England Parochial Fees 2025, (5 December 2024).
- Support for “radical change in burial law” by Church in Wales, (3 December 2024).
- Trees in Churchyards, (2 December 2024).
- Balancing heritage and necessity: Consistory Court jurisdiction in managing churchyard trees, (21 November 2024).
- Churchyard Regulations – “non-standard cases”, (22 November 2024) and Churchyard Memorial Regulations – omissions explained, (12 November 2024).
- “A most ingenious paradox”, (29 August 2024).
- Non-Christian symbols on churchyard headstones, (9 July 2024).
- Tottenham Park Cemetery: The Ministry of Justice announced that it is to apply to the Privy Council for an order prohibiting further burials at Tottenham Park Cemetery in North London. No new burials would be permitted except where plots had previously been reserved.
Organs
- Pipe Organs – repair, removal and replacement, (10 May 2024).
- Consistory court considers organ donation, again, (2 May 2024).
General/Miscellaneous
- Law Commission: scoping financial remedies on divorce, (18 December 2024).
- Statement on BBC File on 4 on abuse by David Tudor, (16 December 2024).
- Appointment of CNC Chair for Canterbury, (16 December 2024).
- Support for “radical change in burial law” by Church in Wales, (3 December 2024).
- Makin review of the Smyth case published, (7 November 2024).
- Proposed demolition of St Paul’s Truro, (7 November 2024).
- Behind the Stained-Glass: institutional racism in the Church of England, (6 November 2024).
- Safe access zones and silent prayer at abortion clinics, (1 November 2024).
- Memorialization of Thomas Corker in Falmouth church, (29 October 2024).
- Publication of Smyth independent review – 13 November, (22 October 2024).
- Rebuke to Bishop-designate of Wolverhampton, (14 October 2024).
- Scottish Episcopal Church, the Canon 54 Process, (10 October 2024).
- SEC not to pursue allegations against Bishop, (8 October 2024).
- First “Minster” for Church in Wales, (21 September 2024).
- Archbishops’ Commission on Racial Justice – 5th report, (23 August 2024).
- Holy ground or Hollywood? – the canons & filming in church: Re St Mary the Virgin Morpeth. (22 August 2024).
- Parochial Fees – 2025 and 2026, (21 August 2024).
- Vatican ‘lexicon’ on end-of-life issues, (9 August 2024).
- Richard III: the prequel, (3 August 2024).
- Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Bill, (17 July 2024).
- Clergy Discipline Commission: Annual Report 2024, (17 June 2024).
- John Smyth Review – a further update, (14 May 2024).
- “Spiritual influence” and elections – an update, (8 May 2024).
- Retirement of Dean Richard Peers, a Press Release issued by Llandaff Cathedral on 31 March 2024, a segue to Dean Richard Peers CDM decision (22 March 2024); and a prequel to New Dean of Llandaff Cathedral announced, (7 April 2024).
- Use of cremation ashes for jewellery (again), (3 March 2024).
- Ordination after remarriage: Synod motion approved, 1 March 2024.
- Ordination after remarriage: Synod motion approved (1 March 2024).
- Fiona Scolding to review Pilavachi links to New Wine, (28 February 2024).
- Safeguarding: General Synod vote, (25 February 2024).
- Jay Report on Safeguarding in Church of England, (21 February 2024).
- Pew replacement in St Edmundsbury Cathedral, one of the last Church of England cathedrals to replace its pews with chairs, (2 April 2024).
- Towards “net zero”, a cautionary tale, experience with air source heat pumps. (3 April 2024).
- Sanctions imposed for illegal boiler installation, wilful disregard of faculty jurisdiction. (17 April 2024).
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Updated: 31 December at 12:15/
Notes on the conventions used for the navigation between cases reviewed in this post are summarized here.