Last year’s General Synod approved amendments to what is now called the Church Fabric and Development Fund which extend its scope to include the development of initiatives supporting the long–term mission of the Church. The new funding regulations are now in place.
 
In his Presidential Address to General Synod, the Archbishop of Armagh expressed his hope that the central Church should be seeking to reshape some of its structures so that they may more effectively serve the wider life, outreach and witness of the Church into the long term. The idea behind the changes to the fund is to allow it to be used by parishes and dioceses more widely than before.
 
The aim of the fund is now threefold:
 
1. to preserve the support provided to parishes with restoration and repair obligations for church buildings;
 
2. to create opportunities to develop forward–thinking Church–wide initiatives;
 
3. to allow parishes with investment funds tied up under the old Church Fabric Fund provisions access to these funds for local development initiatives.
 
Application forms for each of the purposes, along with guidance notes which further explain the changes and criteria for grants, are available on the Parish Resources section (Funding & Grants) of the Church of Ireland website: www.ireland.anglican.org/parish-resources