19 May 2026

Totnes United Free Church DHCT Case Study

Case Studies, Who Are We?

Where: Totnes United Free Church

Location: Google Maps

The Works: Works to flat roof and chimnehy

DHCT Grant Awarded: £5,000

Total Project Fund: £18,028

Date of DHCT Grant Award: April 2025

Project Start: June 2025

Project End: April 2026

Overview

Originally built in 1877 as a chapel with a vestry, previous congregations have over the years added on to the main building a church hall and extra rooms; improved accessibility, and removed pews for a more functional worship space. In recent years the building has for various reasons not been the priority, and now we have leaking roofs, damp, mold, and walls and windows in need of urgent repair.
At the church’s recent vision evening when a SWOT analysis was carried out, the building was the only aspect of church life that appeared in all four boxes. As a membership we want to eradicate the threat, minimise the weaknesses, and maximise the strengths and opportunities that our building affords us to work out our vision. The plan for improving our facilities and making the building watertight and warm will enable us to provide better quality accommodation for our guests and expand the services we provide. We are delighted to host a number of community initiatives and partner with them in meeting people‘s needs. We value these partnerships and see them along with our own projects as a response to the Biblical call on God’s people in Matthew 25:35

The Grant Application & Project

The Grant Application and Phase 1 works
The disused chimney is in poor condition with large open sections of cracked flaunching where the render has failed and has fallen away. The chimney pots and flues are also open to water ingress. The render is also in poor condition. The chimney should be taken down to roof level, capped off and slated over. The roof over the office is in poor condition with numerous ‘flash band’ type patch repairs, with a build up of algae (very slippery), vegetation and debris, such as broken slates and pieces of render. The roof appears to be leaking as there is staining to the ceiling.
Quinquennial Report produced by Ray Clarke MCIOB, Tech IOSH October 2024

The total cost of phase 1 is £18,027.60 of which the DHCT has given a grant of £5,000 with the rest raised from the church membership, local Charitable Trusts and the Benefact Trust

The Trustees and membership of Totnes United Free Church are most grateful to the Trustees of the DHCT for the grant of £5,000 as this not only allowed work to begin, but was evidence in other successful funding bids.