£1m fund opens to help Scotland’s listed places of worship

Historic Environment Scotland’s pilot fund will help cover VAT on repair and conservation work, first come, first served.

Daily Alba · 2 October 2026 · 2 min read

Illustrative image of a historic abbey interior with scaffolding; not a specific church. Illustrative image, not a photograph of the reported event.

Scotland’s Places of Worship Fund opened for applications on 1 October, offering up to £1 million to help listed places of worship meet VAT costs on repair and conservation work, Historic Environment Scotland (HES) announced.

Replacing a UK scheme

The pilot was created after the closure of the UK-wide Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. It is open to all faiths and denominations, with money allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Accessibility

HES says more than 100 faith representatives expressed interest. Application information is available in Arabic, Gaelic, Polish, Hindi, Urdu and Hebrew.

Timescale

The fund runs until March 2027 and will help gather evidence on demand. Funding comes from HES’s existing grants budget.

Source & attribution: This original report is based on Historic Environment Scotland, published 1 October 2026. This is not independent on-the-ground reporting.

£1m fund opens to help Scotland’s listed places of worship

Replacing a UK scheme

Accessibility

Timescale

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