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The ultimate object of the Trust is to promote the Christian religion, to contribute to the funds of any charitable institution and to carry out any charitable purpose.

The majority of the Trust's donations are used to support the dioceses and cathedrals of the Church of England.  The Trust has a general fund which supports appeals from churches for building and restoration projects, repair of church fabric and charities preserving UK heritage.

When Gavin Astor, 2nd Baron of Hever founded this Trust in 1955, his main aim was to ensure donations could be made to charitable bodies in the fields of the arts, medicine, religion, education, conservation, youth and sport. The trustees of today honour these aims and lay particular stress on supporting local youth organisations and generally helping medical research and education programmes.

If you are planning to repair or conserve a memorial, the work may be eligible for a grant under one of the following schemes:

Historic buildings and conservation area grants 
Cadw is able to fund the repair and restoration of a memorial if it is judged to be of outstanding architectural or historic interest or if works to it will significantly enhance the conservation area in which it is located.

Civic Initiative grants
Some works to memorials might be eligible for grant under this Cadw scheme.

Memorials Grant Scheme 
This scheme is run by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in Wales and England. Since March 2005 charities (and religious groups exempted from registering as charities) have been able to claim as a grant the equivalent of the VAT paid on the eligible costs of construction, renovation and maintenance of a public memorial. Since March 2006, the VAT paid on professional fees associated with eligible work has also been covered by the scheme. Further details can be found on the website www.memorialgrant.org.uk.

War Memorials Trust
Grants may be available for war memorials from the War Memorials Trust. The trust can also advise on appropriate conservation methods. Further details can be obtained from www.warmemorials.org.

For further details of the above, refer to separate entries in this Directory (see below).  For further details of the Civic Initiatives grants, see entry in Heritage Link Directory.

Since 2007 Cadw has offered a special scheme for grants for repairs to Church in Wales churches (and other Anglican churches in Wales). 

Carbon Trust is a commercial initiative, which receives its funding from a number of institutional investors and other sources, the larget of which is the Government (Defra, and the devolved regional assemblies).  Its mission is to accelerate the move to a low carbon economy now and develop low carbon technologies for the future.

In addition to advice on good practice, the Trust offers access to interest-free loans and capital allowances for energy saving projects carried out by approved contractors.

The Church Buildings Council (formerly known as the Council for the Care of Churches) is a statutory body accountable to the General Synod.  It supports dioceses and parishes in the use, care and development of parish churches, their contents and churchyards.  Its day-to-day work involves:
•  offering advice to Chancellors, dioceses and parishes on faculty applications;
•  distributing grants for the conservation of church fabric and fittings;
•  organising conferences and seminars and publishing books and other guidance on subjects relating to the care and use of church buildings, their contents and churchyards;
•  advising dioceses and the Church Commissioners on proposals for closing or closed churches.

As regards its grant-making activities, the CBC has two main grants programmes to support parishes in the repair and conservation of objects of artistic/historical significance and in need of urgent repairs:
• Grants for historic furnishings and artworks
• Grants for fabric repairs

The Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England oversees the Church's own system of controls under the Care of Cathedrals Measure as amended by the Care of Cathedrals (Amendment) Measure 2005. Before implementing any proposals which would affect the character of a cathedral building, its setting, or archaeological remains within its precinct, or an object of artistic, archaeological, architectural or historic interest owned by the Chapter, in its possession or to the possession of which it is entitled, the Dean and Chapter are required to get approval under the Measure, either from the Fabric Advisory Committee serving the cathedral or from the Commission itself. The Commission also offers advice on matters relating to the architecture, archaeology, art and history of cathedrals and their precincts, landscape and environment and publishes a range of guidance and advisory notes.

In addition to its advisory role, the Commission administers two small grant schemes:

•  The Cathedral Amenities Fund (CAF) which exists to preserve and improve the visual amenity of ancient cathedrals, abbeys and churches in the UK.

•  The English Cathedrals Repair Fund (ECRF) which grant-aids the repair and conservation of objects, monuments and specific items of cathedral fabric.

The main objects of the Foundation are:
• to assist with grants for the repair of old buildings which are open to the public, and are within the counties of Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire or Northamptonshire; and
• also the conservation of monuments, tombs, hatchments, memorial brasses etc and other related purposes, without territorial restriction.

The Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust makes grants to charities and churches in Kent with the aim of improving the quality of life for local people.

The Kent-wide Church Repair Grants programme makes grants to support the fabric and maintenance of churches anywhere in Kent and where possible to encourage their long-term sustainability.  [Note: The major Church Awards programme has now closed with the introduction in 2008 of this programme.]

The Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust makes grants to charities and churches in Kent with the aim of improving the quality of life for local people.

The East Kent Rural and Coastal Community Grants programme is targeted at projects in East Kent that propose innovative ways of tackling rural and coastal community problems, or create a wider range of opportunities in these areas.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced the Memorials Grant Scheme in the March 2005 Budget. The scheme is aimed at charities, but religious groups that are exempted from registering as charities are also eligible. The scheme will return in grant aid the amount of VAT incurred in the construction, renovation and maintenance of memorials on or after 16th March 2005.

The refund scheme parallels the related Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; it applies to memorials in the form of statues, monuments and similar constructions.

The Government has made proposals to the European Commission for a permanent reduced VAT rate to be charged on memorial construction, renovation and maintenance. The Memorials Grant Scheme is a temporary measure. It will operate until 2011 unless agreement is reached sooner on a permanent reduced rate.

The scheme is being administered by DCMS for the whole of the United Kingdom.