| THE INDEPENDENCE of the Church Commissioners to rule on the sale of parsonages was questioned this week by the Very Revd Dr Michael Higgins, a former Dean of Ely.
Dr Higgins, who is also a trustee of the campaigning group Save Our Parsonages (SOP), said: “SOP’s feelings would be: ‘Does the Pastoral Committee reflect the true independence on these matters?’ The Church Commissioners are deeply involved with the dioceses, and there is a question as to whether they are really at arm’s length from the issues they are judging.”
Out of nine appeals to save parsonages heard by the Pastoral Committee between 2005 and 2007, seven sales were allowed to proceed, one was refused, and, in the other case, the diocese withdrew its proposal to sell. Money from two of the sales was ring-fenced for the benefice, a Commissioners’ spokesman said.
The director of SOP, Anthony Jennings, said there was mixed news in the campaign. Prospects for the “fine medieval house, in the church for centuries” at Chew Stoke in Bath & Wells diocese were “not good . . . because of the money it would bring in for diocesan coffers”. The chances of keeping another “ideal house, compact, late Georgian” at East Coker in the same diocese were “fluid”.
But at St Endellion in Truro diocese: “The combined strength of an action group, united opposition, pleas from supporters (including John Betjeman’s daughter), and independent analysis of diocesan accounts showing money spent on bureaucracy, has forced the decision to be reversed.”
A spokesman for the diocese of Bath & Wells said that such “category-C houses” were usually sold because they were difficult to heat.
A competition to find England’s finest parsonage, run by the magazine Country Life, is due to close in eight days. Any parsonage, whether in church hands or privately owned, can be nominated.
Should the Church continue to sell its historic parsonages? Vote
here |
back to News
previous story
|
next story 
.gif "New, nearly new, and used cars for church and charity © site")
