tilities or Underground Assets or Services are known more simply as Gas, Electricity, Water, Drainage and Sewerage. Early attention to these assets needs to be taken in any building project as these come into play in some way or another. This is true even if it is as simple a task as turning them off while work is being done and then turning them back on. Important information for the architect , planner and contractor to know as early as possible is what utilities are present. What they will need to establish is not only where any pipes and or cables are and run but also their size and position / depth. Very often acquiring accurate information, particularly on drainage runs and the depths and inverts of drains, will require a topographical survey. This information is vital when drawings are being prepared so that any planning application to help to prove that drains will run and meet Building Control approvals.

Information will also need to be found about where many of these services are found in the street adjoining the property and this can be done via a streetworks search to each utility provider for the area. Even when all this information has been obtained it is vital that the conditions governing the easements in which the utilities are laid are established and understood, ideally making contact with the utility provide as early as possible. This can even be the case if the work taking place near to an asset is as simple installing some fencing.

A mistake when dealing with Underground Assets such as Electricity or Gas could prove fatal. Equally, interrupting an electricity supply by digging through a main cable using a JCB could not only prove fatal but might lead to a massive insurance claim for consequential losses from third parties in addition to the added costs to the project itself. Other considerations involving utilities may include making arrangements to maintain supplies if other parts of the property are being used regularly or making alternative arrangements such as a generator for electricity for the duration of the project. In any and every event, the key thing is to have as much information as possible to hand BEFORE any work takes place and that when the project is about to start, to make sure that the Contractors Dial before they dig.

It has been a delight and blessing for Church Growth Trust to partner with our sister organisations in the planning, preparation and involvement at the recent Living the Passion conference held in October in Daventry. The theme Together IN Christ, Together WITH Christ, and Together FOR Christ, was a perfectly suited and God ordained theme throughout the packed weekend. Times of Bible teaching, fellowship, and seminars filled the weekend so that everyone could gather safely and enjoy time together.

A recent comment from a delegate said “The teaching by Derek Burnside was excellent very simple, but profound and very easy to understand. It was useful to have some background information to the different agencies who were involved in the conference”.

We were able to share the vision and mission of Church Growth Trust with all the delegates and had some helpful conversations at our exhibition stand throughout the weekend.

We want to share some of the highlights from the weekend in the clip below.

At Church Growth Trust we are always keen to see our church properties improved, so that they are more attractive, welcoming, accessible for all and making best use of the space available.  We have been talking for a number of years to Potters House Church Southend, who occupy Coleman Street Chapel in Southend-on-Sea, about ways of improving the building to achieve all of these things.  We have now agreed the details of the work, obtained planning permission and sourced the funding, and the project is almost complete.  This will provide a permanently ramped access and a better positioned accessible WC, as well as new entrance door (glazed to make it more welcoming, modern and attractive) and a larger reception/welcome area, with direct access to the main worship area, accessible WC and balcony. 

Previously there was an external access to the balcony and a large internal staircase that was taking up space in the worship area.  The kitchen and rear meeting room have also been improved, so that the Chapel is much more suitable for the church’s use. 

As the Pastor Steve Gabriel says, “we as a church are so blessed to have Church Growth Trust helping us with these major improvements to the property, which not only helps us to comply with legislation, but also makes the building much more flexible, attractive for people to come in and provides more space for us as we grow over the next few years”. 

There are many “T”s in a building project. Thanking God for His blessing and provision of a building and the finance is always a good place to start!  Talking to your residential neighbours would be the next key action to take. It is crucial to commend the gospel in the way the work is implemented and this means Telling our neighbours exactly what is happening. Hopefully this will have been done already at the planning phase.

During the building phase agreeing, for example, the Time for the work to start on site each day and how much time is spent on site on a Saturday will be vital to avoid discontent and possible complaints to the Local Authority. Providing a point of contact within the church will be a great kindness and help to head off any potential issues that might arise. There is a vital need to live as a good neighbour during the project because the building work will finish and you will still be neighbours!

The Training of all key staff used by the contractor / builder is another area to consider. It is important that the church’s project manager has sight before the project begins of all the relevant training and qualifications of the staff being used on the project. The purpose of this is to ensure that people are doing what they are trained to do which limits the potential for accidents and also ensures that insurance covers in place are not invalidated.

Tea time will be important to the contractor and his staff – there needs to be an exclusive and safe space allocated for the workers to take lunches and comfort breaks away from the working area. The space will also need a fresh water supply.

Traffic, both pedestrian and vehicular, loading and parking is another key consideration to ensure that both pedestrians and other road users are not unduly inconvenienced or put in harm’s way by the works. This will mean careful risk assessing of transport and traffic including a safe system of working where perhaps deliveries are made outside the rush hours and children going to school. Equally, there will need to be complete separation of pedestrian traffic so that there is NO possibility of people straying onto the work site.

The Fellowship Property Trust, which is the trusteeship services of the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches, has made the decision to close and written to all the churches for which they act as trustee.  Many are setting up Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs) to hold their own trusteeship, but some are not doing so and are being directed to Church Growth Trust (CGT).  We are delighted to work with these churches.  It is however a major task taking on so many trusteeships at the same time (Giles Arnold, CGT’s Chief Executive, has reviewed the deeds for 48 churches and met in person or on Zoom over 30 of these over the last six months!). 

There have already been a number that have asked to use CGT’s services.  Seven churches have so far decided to gift their properties to Church Growth Trust and these included Hey Street Evangelical Church in Cleethorpes, where the church had decided to close and the property has now been relet to a new church.  Two churches have asked CGT to become sole managing trustee of their property.  These include East Dean Free Church near Chichester, where the congregation is small, but determined to continue with their Gospel work in reaching their village and the local area. 

Two churches have asked CGT to take on a custodian trustee role and 11 have asked for us to become their holding trustee (with at least 17 more yet to decide).  These range from congregations that are small in number and mostly elderly often in villages, such as Burnopfield near Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Alfold near Cranleigh, to larger churches in cities like Nottingham and Liverpool. 

“Every church is different” says Giles Arnold, “and unfortunately there is no such thing as a standard set of deeds!  So, every trusteeship situation has to be looked at individually and the options available to each church are discussed, so the best solution for each one can be agreed and then put in place.  If variety is the spice of life, I am certainly living it up!” 

If you are interested in Church Growth Trust’s trusteeship services, please get in touch with us on enquiries@churchgrowth.org.uk or 01536 201339, or look at our booklet on trusteeship services. 

Hebron Church in Stockton-on-Tees have not only been successful in reaching their community, by evangelism and mercy ministries (they run a foodbank from their property), but also have strived to keep their building in good condition.   

When Church Growth Trust were recently gifted the property, we carried out a survey to report on repairs that are required and compliance issues that need to be dealt with.  One of the major points of discussion was the roof, which was showing signs of nail sickness.  As it was the original roof and therefore over 120 years old, the church needed to consider that it should be replaced within the next few years.  They therefore raised the funds, partly through grant-funding, to completely re-roof the main parts of the building.   

There were a number of other matters that were pointed out in the survey that were connected with the main roof, including work on the gable end walls, flashing, capping stones and removal of a redundant chimney, and work that was required to the flat roof.  These have all been included in the re-roofing work, which has been carried out successfully by a local contractor.  The church worked well with the contractor, who showed a great deal of flexibility, and they managed to keep on good terms with all the neighbours (important for their local witness).

The church also tried some innovative methods, including using concrete tiles with feathered edges to give them the appearance of natural slate.  It is hoped that the new roof will last as long as the old one and will not need to be replaced this century!