Old churches: Fit for new purposes NIKOLAUS PEVSNER, an architectural historian, described St Germans Priory as "the most ambitious medieval church of Cornwall." But ambition can be a burden. Too large and awkwardly grand - with two towers, a lychgate and stone gargoyles - for a parish of around 1,400 people, the church was mooted for permanent closure three years ago. It is now a sorry sight, with a green portaloo outside. Empty and decaying churches have long been a problem for the Church of England. Between 2001 and 2011 the proportion of people in England and Wales describing themselves as Christian fell from 72% to 59%, with an especially steep decline outside London. At St Germans, the average Sunday congregation hovers between 12 and 20 people. Since 1980 the Church of England has closed 1,074 churches, 7% of the current total. Most have been converted into flats, particularly in London and other big cities. Some have become carpet warehouses, restaurants or rehearsal venues. One was converted into a circus school, another into part of a library for an Oxford college. For most religious organisations, closing under-used churches and selling them off is the standard procedure. "Once a building is declared redundant we dispose of it," says David Robertson of the Church of Scotland. Roman Catholics have even more limited options. Their deconsecrated churches either remain empty or are put to a use, as the Vatican states, that is "not unbecoming" to their original purpose. But there is a new mood in the Church of England, illustrated by a project started at St Germans earlier this month. The plan is to turn the church into a community centre that will continue to hold religious services. This has worked elsewhere: Michaelhouse café in Cambridge (pictured) serves cappuccinos during the week but the building reverts to its original use as St Michael's church on Sundays. In Hereford, Bath and York, working churches double as coffee shops, crèches and stores. There are several reasons for this. Converting churches into homes is less appealing when property prices are flat or falling, as they mostly are outside London. And other incentives have changed. Since 1997 two charities have provided money to help maintain church buildings. English Heritage was happy to dole out cash to preserve their fabric. It stepped back in 2010, however, leaving the Heritage Lottery Fund as churches" main support. The latter, which launched a £30m ($47m) a year funding scheme in December 2012, is more inclined to back projects that involve the general public, says Ian Morrison, its head of historic conservation. Other denominations are also turning redundant churches to new uses. Of the 900 Methodist chapels in Cornwall, only 250 are still working churches; most of the rest are now homes. But since 2008 the Methodists have started to take their heritage more seriously, says Jo Hibbard, the first Methodist heritage officer. John Wesley's chapel in London is undergoing a £1.5m renovation; the rectory he grew up in is being turned back from a guesthouse into a tourist attraction. Fans of multiple use claim it puts redundant churches back into the centre of a community. It is about "spirituality rather than religion," says Joseph Elders from ChurchCare, a Church of England organisation helping the St Germans scheme. But this approach will not work everywhere. Some churches are simply too remote. "Sometimes it is best when these churches go back into parish use," says Laoise Bailey of the Churches Conservation Trust, which looks after 342 closed churches. That happens sometimes. Toxteth St James in Liverpool reopened in 2009 after 33 years of closure to cater for a charismatic evangelical congregation. Nearby in the Wirral, a church that shut its doors in 2008 has been taken up by a traditionalist Roman Catholic group. But these are rare exceptions. Unless they attract new flocks or discover new purposes, more churches will close.