Faculties

Church buildings, their contents and grounds are protected by the Faculty Jurisdiction and under this legislation, a significant number of alterations, repairs, extensions or additions need to have consent prior to being carried out. Faculties are granted by the Chancellor of the Diocese. There is now an extended range of works which do not require a formal faculty application (outlined in the List A & List B documents below) but, if unsure, please contact us for clarification, prior to carrying out any work.

The Church of England benefits from Ecclesiastical Exemption and is not subject to Listed Building Consent or Conservation Area Consent from the Local Planning Authority. However, it is important to remember that the Ecclesiastical Exemption does not affect the need for Planning Permission, and you may still need to submit an application to the Local Authority if changes are to be made to the outside of the building, if certain alterations or additions are to be made to the churchyard and for changes to its boundaries. Please check with your local authority directly.

PLEASE NOTE – All applications for works to churches and churchyards in the Diocese of Gloucester, including List B works, will need to be completed through the Online Faculty System. The Online Faculty System has been developed by the Church of England and is now used by all Anglican dioceses in England and Wales. It is a web-based planning portal where parishes can develop proposals for new works in their church building, obtain DAC advice, record List A items, and apply for List B and Faculty. It allows parishes, DACs, Registrars, Chancellors, and Archdeacons to access information on a particular proposal quickly and efficiently in a single online space. This ensures the smooth progression of any application from beginning to end.

In order to start using the Online Faculty System and apply, please register here first.   

Please note that the system does not yet allow for applications for reservation of grave spaces or private petitions for memorials in churchyards; these will still require a paper application for now. The application form for the latter can be downloaded below.

If there are any queries in relation to the above, please contact us.

A list of frequently asked questions can be found following this link:

https://facultyonline.churchofengland.org/faqs

Building Management Portal

The Church of England is introducing the Building Management Portal, a new national digital system for managing applications relating to works on churches, their contents, and churchyards.

The portal will replace the Online Faculty System. It will be used for List A, List B, and faculty applications, and will provide a clearer and more structured way for applicants, parishes, DAC teams, archdeacons, registrars, chancellors, and consultees to work through the application process.

The new portal is set to go live on 6 October. The Online Faculty System will be closed on 30 September to allow time for a final export of data to the new portal before it goes live.

The legal process itself is not changing. The Building Management Portal provides a new digital route for managing the same permission framework, with clearer workflow stages, improved case visibility, and role-based access.

Users will access the system through the CofE Portal. This provides a secure login route and includes two-factor authentication. Some users may need to complete a one-time registration process so that their role, diocese, and church access can be assigned correctly.

Existing and historic cases from the Online Faculty System will be migrated into the Building Management Portal. As part of onboarding, dioceses will be asked to review imported information and test representative cases so that any data or access issues can be identified before the final transition.

Training material, FAQs, and guidance will be made available during rollout. Current video guidance is available, and further updates may follow once feedback from parish users has been reviewed.

If you have questions about a current or future application, please contact Sash Giles ku.gr1790294678o.coi1790294678dsolg1790294678@seli1790294678gs1790294678

Further national information is available on the Church of England website.

 

Downloads

How to Use the Online Faculty System

Guidance on proving due regard to Net Zero Carbon

The Operation of the Ecclesiastical Exemption and related planning matters

Faculty Jurisdiction Rules 2019

List A and List B items

Additional Matters Order January 2023

Faculty process diagram

How to submit a good faculty – Guidance sheet 4

What information is needed to support a faculty?

Faculty form for private petitions

Faculty form WORD version for private petitions