Your Community Needs You: Open up your church

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On Saturday 17 April last year, the 500-strong Lincolnshire village of Benington was having fun at a day-long festival of falconry, cookery demonstrations, dance, local history displays, trampolining and stone-masonry and wood-carving workshops, culminating in an evening of jazz, wine and a hog roast. Best of all, it was held in the heart of the village at All Saints, its Grade I-listed, 800-year old parish church. It was also a step back in time, as the church had been closed since 2003, due to lack of congregation. However, the next day its doors closed again, for this was no celebration, merely a milestone.

The festival was an attempt by a group of locals to gain support from their fellow residents for their dream of restoring and reopening this beautiful but ailing church as a multi-purpose community centre. As Kerry Francis, a farmer's wife and member of the Benington Community Heritage Trust, says: "Benington is a traditional village - many felt it was blasphemous to enjoy the church space in the way a community would - but they've all come round now."

It took seven years just to get that far; one of the key lessons of getting involved with the restoration and rejuvenation of big old buildings is that they are long-term commitments. Benington's story of decline is typical: it had already lost its school, post office and surgery. In 2005 the village was trying to work out how it could afford to modernise its dilapidated, 1920s wooden village hall. To Kerry, it just didn't make sense: "Benington isn't big enough to support both buildings. The church was in trouble but it has so much history. I couldn't bear it to be lost in my lifetime."

When she resigned from the village-hall committee to focus on the church she assumed hers was a lone voice. But Kerry soon discovered she wasn't the only one. Judy Crowe was already hard at work helping to organise a handful of locals, mostly former worshippers, who cared greatly but didn't know what to do next. Judy's day job is working for the Diocese of Lincoln, helping to safeguard the future of their empty churches. When she first came across All Saints in 2004, she was so touched by the church and its band of supporters that she became a volunteer herself.

With her guidance, the group set up their heritage trust, which is a limited company and registered charity - an essential status for serious fundraising. And a partnership with the regeneration taskforce of the Churches Conservation Trust gave them access to its valuable knowhow and experience. They've since won funds for consultation, a formal appraisal of the building and options for its use and the drawing up of a business plan. Eight years on and, crucially, with enthusiastic community support, they are ready for the long haul of restoration and adaptation work that will secure modern space for a new post office, mums and toddlers group, café, education centre and computer classes, plus a programme of income-generating events - dance, drama, concerts - to take full advantage of the beautiful interior and acoustics of All Saints. And Kerry Francis will be able to hold her head high when she walks down the high street, knowing her beloved church will safely see out a millennium of service to the community. www.beningtonallsaintschurch.co.uk

Find out more

At St Leonard’s in Yarpole, Herefordshire, the historic working church houses a gallery, shop, café and post office. Elsewhere, listed churches are used as performance venues, climbing walls and even a circus-skills training centre. Here are Kerry Francis of Benington’s tips on tackling a similar project:

● Try to take a broad view of all the possibilities and keep an open mind
● Consult the community to find out what they need or want
● It must be a viable project, so approach it with a business head
● Look for partners – expertise and a stock of experience is essential.
For more information on saving your church, download our factsheet

The Prince's Countryside Fund is Country Living magazine's charity of the year and will be supporting its work at the CL Fairs and in the magazine. It's funded by businesses that have a connection to the countryside, through the products they make or sell. You can donate through your post office. Visit www.princescountrysidefund.org.uk.