Section G · Sectors within the historic environment

G 1 · Places of worship

Places of worship, notably the Church of England cathedrals and parish churches which survive from the Middle Ages and later, constitute remarkably important artistic and historical heritage. Church of England churches alone represent more than a third of all Grade I listed buildings. They offer an extraordinary range of evidence about the past. The monuments inside churches and the gravestones in the churchyards constitute a powerful record of personal and local (and in some cases national) history, intimately related to the communities from which they have emerged. They illustrate the changing history of lives in the community, the role of women, patterns of wealth and social organisation, the developing of craftsmanship, deposits of natural material. Taken together, churches contain the most important surviving collection of early British furniture, often of an everyday type.

Places of worship have much to offer. They are, for example, enriched by their active musical life, through their choirs (at all levels of skill), their musical training for children, the many concerts they host, organ playing, and bell-ringing (there are 60,000 bell-ringers in England).

Their popularity

There is no shortage of sightseeing visitors. Several cathedrals (notably Canterbury Cathedral, York Minster and Westminster Abbey) figure among the most visited historic attractions in the country, whether or not they charge for admission. Many of the people who visit churches are engaged in informal learning as tourists, but Churches also play an important part in the lives of many members of the community. The strength of feeling for parish churches is conveyed by Simon Jenkins’ A Thousand Parish Churches which has sold thousands of copies since publication in 1999. At the other end of the market, it is estimated (though the information is hard to tabulate) that around a million formal school visits are made to churches each year. According to recent research carried out by the Church of England, local churches have an important role for many people who are not regular churchgoers. An Opinion Research Business poll in October 2003 revealed that 63% of British adults would be concerned if their local church or chapel were no longer there, and that a remarkable 86% of adults visited a place of worship over the past year, whether for services, concerts or to find a quiet space. The question remains, how best can religious buildings and their function be interpreted? There are some complicated issues involved.

Interpretation of religious issues

There is the question of religion. We live in a multi-cultural age, when Christianity (and even more the Church of England) is only one among several religious faiths with many members. The assumption which has applied often as a result of convention rather than belief – that the majority of the population will be sympathetic to Christianity is no longer accepted. In this context places of worship can be seen as places where a set of beliefs is propagated, which for many people are irrelevant or unconvincing. Why, then, is it helpful, or even allowable, to take children (adults can be expected to make up their own minds) to such places? Our research suggests that in some cases teachers, and those working in local government, are hostile to the idea of religion, and of Christianity in particular, and will go to some lengths to limit or even prevent visits to places of worship.

This problem can be circumvented by pretending, in a place of worship, that the worship does not exist. Theoretically, it is possible to regard places of worship as interesting architectural and historic constructis, and to ignore the worship for which they are intended. Such an approach evades an issue which should be central to the experience of the church visit, and can only offer a limited understanding of a building constructed for specific purposes, and filled with specific imagery. It is like examining a nutshell and ignoring the nut.

At best, those responsible for places of worship, of whatever sort, are conscious of the reservations, and indeed the lack of knowledge, felt by many of their visitors when confronted by a form of belief with which they are unfamiliar. At the Hindu Balaji Temple in Birmingham, and at various cathedrals, there is no sense of propaganda, no apparent wish to preach or to convert. The religious life of the place of worship is presented and discussed directly and without apology, but equally without the message that these ideas represent the only truth.

What places of worship can offer

The issues addressed in places of worship are central to our existence. Questions about the purpose of life, the nature of good and evil, the possibility of an after-life, the possible existence of a deity, comparative forms of religious belief, can profitably be addressed within the context of places of worship. These issues do not disappear within a secular society. In the hands of sensitive interpreters, places of worship can open doors to the consideration of spiritual issues, and by extension questions about society and the way we regard the people around us, which are at the heart of the citizenship agenda and which indeed have a broader significance than that.

Difficulties for visitors

Places of worship can appear intimidating. Churches, for instance, may appeal to a certain type of visitor: middle-aged and upwards, middle class and educated. Others may feel excluded. As one contributor to our discussions put it, for many people the idea of visiting a cathedral is as off-putting as going into a betting shop would be for most regular visitors to churches: they just wouldn’t know what they’d be expected to do once inside, and prefer not to take the risk.

Physical accessibility

There are also practical issues. For security and other reasons many parish churches, and most Nonconformist chapels, are open only for religious services. It is not easy for the prospective visitor to discover which are open, and when.

The Open Churches Trust, founded in 1994 by Andrew Lloyd Webber, aims to ensure the opening of locked places of worship. The Trust advocates an attendant/steward to provide security, welcome visitors and explain the building. It has succeeded in opening places of worship, on an ecumenical basis, all over England and Wales, but its resources are limited.

The situation is addressed successfully in Scotland by the Scottish Churches Scheme, a voluntary body which publishes an annual list of the opening times of churches with a short account of their character. The Doors Open Day provides many opportunities to visit Scottish places of worship, and is well attended.

Intellectual accessibility

It can be difficult to interpret places of worship. In Scotland, for example, the nature of Church of Scotland interiors can only be appreciated in any depth by visitors with some grasp of the complex liturgical issues which underlie the arrangement and fittings of these places. Without some knowledge of this background, the full meaning of these places cannot be revealed. The same can apply to Roman Catholic churches, which are filled with religious symbolism.

The achievement in Church of England cathedrals

In the case of cathedrals, the learning potential is richly realised. In the past decade many Church of England cathedrals have come to regard a formal educational brief as an essential part of their activity, in addition to religious instruction.

Many cathedrals regards education as an intrinsic part of their life, though not as a means of raising money or propagating Christianity. There is no attempt to make converts although spiritual issues are not avoided. The aim is to explain what these buildings and their contents mean, why they look as they do (for religious, historical, artistic and technological reasons), how they have functioned in the past, how they function today. These cathedrals do not pretend that they are merely historic buildings, and do not wish only to be seen as such: their spiritual legacy is central to their existence. They welcome people from all religious backgrounds and from none. Their clergy and staff strive to make the buildings centres of life in the community, on many levels. The actual form of the buildings and their contents act as a powerful symbol of the messages they contain.

At St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds, the education officer organises a range of activities: events for young mothers and children, adult learning, lectures on the spiritual life, tours by the Visitors’ Officer (with an emphasis on local history), musical education through the choir and musical outreach, and a training programme for children’s guides. The cathedral believes that the reception given to visitors is of crucial importance and has a Guild of Welcome Stewards. The cathedral has created links with West Suffolk College where it contributes to courses on tourism, building construction and the media.

Ely Cathedral employs a full-time education officer, with support from the clergy. The cathedral has established strong links with local schools and has around 10,000 school visits each year, with about half coming from secondary schools (a very high proportion for any historic site). The cathedral lays a particular emphasis on explaining the Christian faith, and bringing to life the Christian stories and symbols embodied in the building’s structure and decoration. It also has very active programme for adults. At Lincoln Cathedral, a Schools’ Officer is employed and organises a wide range of activities using the cathedral’s varied resources as fully as possible. In addition to the volunteer guides, the cathedral arranges such events as School Science Days, which concentrate on how the building was erected, using old technical books from the Library, and involving school staff, the glaziers’ department, Lincoln University and a local construction group. The Library, which is large and well-stocked, plays an important part in the cathedral’s learning. Poetry competitions, study of the animal sculpture in the building, and lectures by celebrity speakers (a favourite means of attracting the public in several cathedrals) are all popular activities.

Southwark Cathedral, in south London, has an Education Officer who has worked hard in recent years to build up contacts with local schools. Around 6,000 schoolchildren visit each year, for a wide variety of courses and experiences. The Cathedral stresses the importance of building up local networks. Staff training is considered of key importance.

At Southwark, as at other cathedrals, the religious life is vital. When schools come, they are always taken into the main building, even though the main part of the day may be spent elsewhere. Prayers are said at regular intervals during the day by Day Chaplains, who always include a mention of the visiting school in their prayers.

Through Southwark Cathedral’s Community Ambassadors’ Scheme, societies that may regard the cathedral as alien are brought in to study the buildings and to be given some understanding of what they mean. This has been a very positive experience. The cathedral has also worked closely with schools of art and design.

Parish churches

There is a fundamental difference in provision for learning between cathedrals and parish churches. Whereas cathedrals are relatively well-funded, and usually occupy prominent positions in important cities, parish churches are not generally so fortunate. Churches within the Church of England, at least, tend to be run by priests with responsibility for several other parishes, assisted by volunteer churchwardens and parochial church councils. Budgets are generally very limited and are hard pressed to keep the fabric in repair and meet the diocesan contributions. In general, parish churches find it difficult to organise activities, since ‘parish churches do not have a corporate brain’. There is no real professional core to advise them, especially in education work.

English Heritage has produced a booklet called New Uses of Old Churches: Citizenship and the Historic Environment, which describes for example how children at three Ipswich primary schools were encouraged to think about the future of old churches in the town, in a citizenship-directed project. This is quite a rare initiative.

At parish church level, a number of interesting individual initiatives have recently developed.

St Giles’s, Camberwell, London

The education adviser at St Giles’s, a retired RE advisor/teacher who has written on using art in religion, has developed activities including two education packs for KS2 pupils, using the building for Religious Education and History. St Giles’s is apparently the only church that separates the RE and history aspects of the church. These sessions also seem to be among the most structured of the learning activities offered by churches.

Schemes for special schools use the senses as a means to understand the church. The church encourages pupils from all Key Stages and the local nursery children to visit, with programmes written to the school’s specification. The church also collaborates with Camberwell School of Art, which is in the parish, on educational activities.

St Giles’s is very active in the community: it even has a licensed jazz club in the crypt.

Holy Trinity, Coventry

Holy Trinity is a fourteenth-century church next door to Coventry Cathedral. Visiting school groups (normally primary though also secondary) are given a tour of the church as a way of illustrating RE, history and architecture. The subjects are not separated: children are told how people worshipped in the past (they can also dress up in ceremonial robes) and sessions are not based round the curriculum. The church has a Doom painting on the Chancel Arch, dating from c1430-1440, which provides a focus for discussions based on its imagery, history, conservation and underlying mathematical structure. Atour of the whole church can take 90 minutes to two hours.

The education programme is run by a member of the church team, assisted by a retired maths teacher who is putting together a maths package based on the church’s architecture. This is the only place of worship to offer the theme of ‘Reconciliation’, which is part of the Citizenship curriculum.

St Mary’s, West Malling, Rochester

School visits are made by primary and some secondary schools. The visits involve a mixture of religious and historical content, with the building and churchyard framing the subjects. The symbolism of the architecture is used to explain religious themes and the stained glass windows’ iconography helps narrate biblical stories. The church’s various architectural styles are put in an historic context. The church has a fine carving of the coat-of arms of James II, which leads to the subject of royal lineage. The children enjoy a trip up the Norman tower to see the bells and hand-winding clock. The churchyard also provides inspiration: the headstones and the trees (an old yew and two ancient limes), act as religious and historic props.

Churchyards and cemeteries

These old-established open spaces containing graves and sometimes rare examples of plant life, are remarkable resources. Cemeteries, developed from the early nineteenth century onwards, have the potential (very little realised) to illuminate our understanding of the relatively recent past in a way which is closely related to environmental studies.

Kensal Green Cemetery, London

This cemetery, a site of 77 acres with 33 acres next door to the Roman Catholic Cemetery, was opened in 1833. The Dissenters’ Chapel was completed in 1837. Since then the site has been owned privately and like most cemeteries fell into neglect. The Friends, started in 1990, help conserve the ground and monuments, of which some are of great architectural importance. The Friends have a group of fourteen guides. The Friends are involved with much of the daily maintenance, the conservation of the monuments, and research into the personal history of monuments and the deceased. Money from visits provides the funds for their literature (which includes Paths to Glory, describing 1500 monuments) and limited but effective advertising. Any publicity is valuable: they find that even people living nearby know nothing about the Cemetery. Regular tours take place on Sundays. The Dissenters’ Chapel was restored by English Heritage, and a gallery built which is hired out for parties and exhibitions and used for school groups.

The cemetery, as a functioning historic site, has immense potential as an educational resource. It offers ideal opportunities to study the attitudes of eighteenth and nineteenth century society to death, as well as architecture and sculpture. Visitor numbers testify to the high levels of interest. The staff welcome the prospect of wider recognition being given to educational work at sites such as Kensal Green and the need to improve such services through funding and an acknowledgement of cemeteries’ potential for learning.

Other Christian denominations

Roman Catholic, Methodist and United Reform Churches, as well as the Quakers, often occupy buildings of great architectural and historic interest, whose importance is sometimes not recognised as fully as it deserves to be. The Methodist Church has numerous buildings of considerable, and often unrecognised, architectural merit. It now issues an annual leaflet, Methodist Heritage. A number of Methodist centres, including the New Room, Wesley’s Chapel, Bristol and the Museum of Methodism at Englesea Brook, near Nantwich in Cheshire, have developed links with local schools and offer learning opportunities.

At St Chad’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in Birmingham, a notable building by Pugin, the Dean has produced a teacher’s pack for schools. His plan is that children from all the Roman Catholic primary schools in the Archdiocese should come with their teachers at some point during their primary school careers to the Cathedral, and spend a morning learning what the building is about.

In Ireland, too, the field of sacred architecture is potentially very rich but has been little explored. Some progress was made in 2001 when the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland and the Royal Society of Ulster Architects came together to create an exhibition entitled Sacred Places – the Story of Christian Architecture in Ireland. This initiative led to exhibitions in Belfast in 2000 and Dublin in 2001, with an accessible publication discussing developments in Irish church architecture from early Christian Ireland to the present.

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On this page

	Their popularity
	Interpretation of religious issues
	What places of worship can offer
	Difficulties for visitors
	Physical accessibility
	Intellectual accessibility
	The achievement in Church of England cathedrals
	Parish churches
	St Giles’s, Camberwell, London
	Holy Trinity, Coventry
	St Mary’s, West Malling, Rochester
	Churchyards and cemeteries
	Kensal Green Cemetery, London
	Other Christian denominations

'A subliminal message is sent out by cathedrals: Sun readers are not welcome.'
Revd. John Inge, Vice-Dean, Ely Cathedral