Use of church halls for village hall and other charitable purposes (CC18)
How a church hall may be used for other charitable purposes if it is no longer needed exclusively for church purposes.
Applies to England and Wales
What is this guidance about?
This guidance explains what to do when a church hall is no longer needed, or only needed occasionally for church purposes. It covers situations including when:
- there is no longer any genuine church use for the property and you cannot use it in the way described in the governing document
- you are still using the property as a church hall, but at all other times the hall is not needed in the way described in the governing document
- you may need Charity Commission authority
Technical terms used in this guidance
The Charities Act: means the Charities Act 2011 as amended.
Church hall: means any building which, according to its governing document, is to be used for church purposes.
Use for church purposes: means use for any purpose for the advancement of religion, including use by organisations connected with the church. For example, use of the premises for:
- the celebration of Divine Service
- evangelistic activities
- confirmation classes
- religious festivals
- Sunday schools
- meetings of the clergy
- activities associated with religious services (for example, wedding receptions)
It may also include meetings of:
- the brownies, cubs, guides and scouts
- church clubs and societies (for example, Mothers’ Union)
Designated land: means land that must be used for particular purposes as set out in the governing document.
Governing document: means any document which sets out the charity’s purposes and, usually, how it is to be administered. It may be a trust deed, constitution, conveyance, will, or scheme of the Charity Commission.
Trustees means charity trustees: charity trustees are the people who, under the charity’s governing document, are responsible for the general control and management of the administration of the charity. Some charities also have a custodian trustee (or, in the case of the Church of England, a diocesan authority) whose function under the governing document is restricted to holding its property. The custodian trustee has no power to make management decisions and must act on the lawful instructions of the charity trustees. In the Church of England the Parochial Church Council will often be the charity trustees of a church hall and the Diocesan Board of Finance will be the Diocesan authority.
The trusts of a charity mean the provisions contained in the governing document. Where land is involved, and there is no formal governing document, the trusts may be inferred from the way in which it has been used.
Part I: Church halls needed for both church and other charitable purposes
When can a church hall be used for other charitable purposes?
Sometimes the trustees of a church hall may find that:
- the hall is not needed all the time for church purposes, although it is needed on an occasional and regular basis
- they have insufficient funds available to maintain the hall or to improve it to acceptable standards
- the hall is needed by the community for an additional ‘charitable’ use, which does not qualify as a church purpose, such as for a village hall or youth centre
Where this is the case, unless the governing document of the charity permits the use of the property for non-church purposes, the trustees cannot simply allow the hall to be used for another charitable purpose. This is because they must only use the church hall for the charitable church purposes set out in the governing document.
However, if the trustees find there is no longer any genuine church use for the property they must take steps to ensure that the church hall property can be used effectively for charitable purposes.
What trustees decide is in the best interests of the church hall charity will depend on the specific wording of the purposes in the church hall’s governing document and the practical circumstances affecting the charity. This will mean amending the charitable purposes in the governing document by using either a power of amendment in the governing document or the statutory power of amendment, and obtaining the Commission’s authority where needed. Examples of changes include:
- amending the purposes of the church hall to enable the disposal of the property
- widening the purposes so that the church hall can continue to be used as a church hall but for a wider group of people such as the congregation of a church in a neighbouring parish
Read our guidance about changing purposes (CC36) and the disposal of charity land (CC28) to understand the legal requirements that apply.
As part of taking any steps to change the use of the church hall, trustees will need to consider whether the property is subject to any covenant restricting its use. These are usually found in the property’s title deeds. If it is, they may need to seek a variation of the covenant. Trustees should seek legal advice if they are unclear, and legal advice on any change in their title deeds.
In addition to any Charity Commission authority that may be needed, the trustees may need to obtain the formal consent of the diocesan authority. For example, where the property is held by the Parochial Church Council under section 6(3) of the Parochial Church Council (Powers) Measure 1956, or (more rarely) under the Incumbents and Churchwardens (Trusts) Measure Act 1964.
How can a change of use be achieved?
Church hall property held under a lease
Where a lease of the hall which only permits the use of the premises as a church hall is held by the church hall trustees, they will need to consider:
- negotiating a variation in the lease with the landlord to permit a change of use. Trustees will need to ensure that they have the power to renegotiate the lease in their governing document or a power in law. If they do not have the power to do this, Commission authority may be required
- surrendering the existing lease and negotiating a fresh one. The surrender of a lease is a disposal of land so trustees should consider the legal requirements on the disposal of land set out in our guidance
Trustees should seek legal advice if they are unclear.
Property owned by the charity (not held on lease)
Trustees should consider whether the appropriate route is:
- using a power of amendment in the governing document, if there is one, to change how the church hall can be used. Effectively you are changing the church hall purposes. You must comply with any conditions or instructions in that power of amendment
- using the statutory power of amendment to change how the church hall can be used, which will require obtaining the Commission’s authority because you are changing the church hall purposes. Read our guidance about changing purposes (CC36) to understand the requirements and how to apply for authority
- applying for a Charity Commission scheme to authorise a lease to another charity, such as a village hall charity (sometimes known as an Albemarle scheme)
Where the Albemarle scheme route is chosen, it is important to note that a lease cannot be granted until after the scheme has been made.
What will an Albemarle scheme do?
An Albemarle scheme will provide authority for the trustees to grant a lease of the property to enable use by another charity, such as a village hall charity (the lessee). Normally, an Albemarle will also set out:
- the charitable purposes which the church hall can be used for
- the additional uses
- the period of the lease
- the rent to be paid
- the days and/or occasions on which the use of the premises is reserved for the church hall trustees without payment
- how the rent or other payment to be received by the church hall trustees shall be applied by them for other charitable purposes
The scheme will form part of the church hall charity’s governing document, but the trusts of the lessee charity should be set out in a separate governing document.
How does the church hall charity benefit from granting a lease to a non-church charity?
The advantage of an Albemarle scheme is to retain the use of the property for church purposes at certain times.
A lease of this type also preserves the building (whether through maintenance covenants or the charging of a proper rent) for future generations, should it once again be required for a wider range of church purposes. In the meantime, it brings into full use an under-used property, which perhaps cannot be properly maintained, or improved to modern standards, by the church hall trustees.
What provisions should a lease contain?
A lease should normally:
- contain suitable provisions for the repair and maintenance of the property and for the payment of rent by the lessee
- enable the church hall trustees to charge the best rent reasonably obtainable having regard to the reserved use for charitable purposes and the lessees obligations under the lease
- reserve to the church hall trustees the right to use the property, free of charge, on specified days and/or on a specified number of occasions
- contain a covenant against assignment of the lease or underletting by the lessee
- provide for the lessee to have financial responsibility for the repair and maintenance of the hall
The church hall trustees should ensure that they take independent professional advice from, for example, solicitors and surveyors when considering the terms of any lease they might grant.
How long should a lease be for?
Normally a lease should be for a period of not more than 35 years, with no option to renew. This will enable the lessee to apply for local authority grant-aid to improve or repair the property if necessary.
The Commission recognises that if the lessee intends to spend very large sums (excessive for a 35 year lease) on the property, it is reasonable that they should enjoy security of tenure for a longer period. In such circumstances the trustees of the church hall charity should:
- take professional advice about the length of the term to be granted in any particular case
- take account of the need to review the arrangements from time to time
- inform the Commission
Are there any special conditions where the lessee will undertake building works?
If the lessee carries out building works, the church hall trustees may be prevented from using the hall. For example, where the premises are being demolished and rebuilt, renovated or improved. Further, the hall may be leased at a low rent partly because such works are to be carried out.
In these circumstances it is reasonable that the church hall trustees should be protected from undue delays in completing the works (particularly as the proposal is likely to have come from the lessee). Where it is known in advance that building works will be undertaken, the scheme authorising the lease will usually require them to be completed within three years.
Where the existing hall is to be demolished and a new one built by the lessee, the lease will need to include special provisions about the new hall. To protect their own interests, the church hall trustees should take legal advice before entering into such a lease. They must also satisfy themselves that the lessee has the financial resources to complete the project.
In some cases, substantial building works may be proposed after the lease has been granted. The Commission can, if the church hall trustees request it, include a provision in the scheme allowing the terms of the lease to be varied in the event of substantial expenditure on rebuilding, repairs or modernisation being undertaken by the lessee after the lease has been granted.
What happens at the end of the lease?
Shortly before the end of the lease the church hall trustees will need to consider the future use of the property. Normally, these are the options:
- if the church hall is needed again solely for use for church purposes, the church hall trustees should take control of the property at the end of the lease
- if occasional but regular use for church purposes is still needed, the church hall trustees can apply for a new Albemarle scheme as explained in the section above. Or, they can consider widening the church hall purposes as explained in the section above
- if the hall is no longer needed at all for church purposes, the church hall trustees must take steps to ensure the effective use of the church hall property. To allow this, the trustees must amend the purposes of the church hall charity. Follow the guidance explained in the section above
What is the relationship between the church hall trustees and the lessee?
Legally, the relationship between the church hall trustees and the lessee will be that of landlord and tenant, and should be on a business footing.
Where the lessee is an unregistered charity, it will need to register with the Commission.
In many cases where the lessee is a village hall or youth centre, a management committee will already be in existence and may have been using other premises for some time. It may be appropriate for the church hall trustees to be represented on the management committee of the lessee charity.
Part II: Church halls no longer needed for church purposes
Should the trustees sell or let the property?
Trustees must take steps to ensure the effective use of the church hall property.
What is effective depends on the specific wording of the charitable purposes in the church hall charity’s governing document and the practical circumstances it faces.
The trustees may decide that the most effective use would be to sell or let the property and use the proceeds to further charitable purposes. If the church hall is designated land, the charitable purpose of the church hall charity must be amended to provide the power of sale unless the governing document already provides this power.
Read our guidance about changing purposes and disposing of charity land to understand the legal requirements that apply.
The church hall trustees will also need to consider whether there are any statutory restrictions on their selling or letting the property (for example property held under section 6 of the Parochial Church Council (Powers) Measure 1956).
What are the legal requirements around selling or leasing the church hall?
These are set out in our guidance about disposing of charity land.
Last updated 7 March 2024 + show all updates
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Guidance updated to reflect changes introduced by the Charities Act 2022.
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Added translation