A new fund has been launched by the Church of England to help parishes enhance accessibility and inclusion for those are deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent. After successfully delivering this grant in the Northern provinces, it is now available for parishes across the country for the period 2026-2028.
There are two funding streams: Large Grants and Small Grants. The maximum award for a Large Grant is £50,000 and for a Small Grant, £5,000. This was put in place to enable not only reordering works and structural changes, but also people-focussed projects aimed at improving mission and ministry of and among deaf and disabled people.
Parishes are strongly encouraged to first discuss a potential application with the buildings team before starting work on it. Daniel Lee (Church Buildings Support Officer) is the Officer in Charge in the Diocese of Chichester and can assist on discussing through the application process, what projects may be viable and helping to brainstorm ideas. Additionally, you can contact the Chichester DAC's Disability.Advisers (Jo King & Brendan Martin) for further advice.
Examples of projects funded in the pilot scheme include:
Installing accessible toilets and creating step-free access at churches and church halls
- Installing, improving and ensuring effective operation of hearing-aid loops
- Creating a quiet space, a neurosensory space and providing neurosensory toys, gadgets and noise-cancelling headsets to support families with neurodivergent children
- Adding and marking out a disabled parking bay in the church car park
- Improving signage and printed materials to meet the access needs of partially sighted and dyslexic readers
- Training for church leaders and preachers to enable them to understand the needs of neurodivergent people and better craft their communications
- Improved screens and monitors for captioning and pictorial imagery, and provision of handheld tablets available for sight-impaired, hearing-impaired or neurodivergent attendees
- Replacing an old worn-out wheelchair with a new, comfortable one for lending out as needed to visitors
Further resources can be found on the Church of England's website, along with the application form and guidance documents.
Decisions are made by a project board at national level and final application submissions should be made directly to them via this email: disabilityproject@churchofengland.org