Home Office
A Welsh translation will be published when available.
Overview of the schemes
In 2023 and 2024, the Home Office is continuing to provide protective security measures to places of worship in England and Wales under two schemes:
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Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme
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Protective Security for Mosques Scheme
The schemes provide funding for places of worship and associated faith community centres that are vulnerable to hate crime. These schemes aim to reduce hate crime happening at places of worship so that people can feel safe to attend worship and practise their religion freely.
Through these schemes, vulnerable places of worship can apply for physical protective security measures, such as CCTV, secure fencing, and intruder alarms.
Applicants to the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme are also able to apply for security guarding services. Further information is provided below.
The application process is open from 21 June 2023 until 15 August 2023. We cannot consider any applications received after this date.
For places of worship that are successful in applying to the schemes, security measures will be provided and installed free of charge. This includes any maintenance costs for one year from the installation date (such as for CCTV or for monitored intruder alarm systems).
However, you should be aware that the Home Office cannot fund any additional costs that might result from measures being installed, such as the cost of applying for planning permission or any preparatory work needed (such as ground clearance).
We will confirm the number and type of measures that we are able to provide following your site survey and a final review by the Home Office.
Esotec Limited is the Home Offices delivery partner for physical protective security measures and will be the main point of contact for places of worship who are successful in going forward to the site survey stage. The supplier of security guarding services will be announced later in the year. Successful applicants to the Protective Security for Mosques scheme who have applied for guarding services will be informed as soon as possible.
Who can apply
You should apply to the schemes:
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if you have experienced hate crime at your place of worship, or
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if you feel that your place of worship is vulnerable to hate crime; for example, if hate crime has happened at other places of worship or sites in your community, or if people attending your place of worship have experienced hate crime in the local area
The application must be for a place of worship and/or associated faith community centre located in England and Wales.
The types of places of worship that can apply under the schemes include (but are not limited to):
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churches
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gurdwaras
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mosques
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temples
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associated faith community centres (for example, a community centre where regular worship takes place that is near a place of worship and run by that place of worship)
There is one application form that covers both schemes. Muslim places of worship and their associated faith community centres will be allocated to the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme. All other faiths, except the Jewish community, will be allocated to the Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme. A separate funding scheme is available to provide security measures for the Jewish community.
We cannot accept applications for the following:
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living accommodation
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educational facilities (faith schools and other educational institutions are not eligible)
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NHS establishments, including chapels and prayer rooms
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other buildings that are owned by the place of worship or faith community but not used for regular worship (for example, cafes, education centres, youth centres, etc). Where these structures exist within the place of worship or on the same site, the schemes can only cover protection of places that are regularly used for worship
If your place of worship has received funding through the Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme in 2021 to 2022 or 2022 to 2023, you may still apply. However, funding for places of worship that have received funding in the last two years will be at the discretion of the Home Office and will only be awarded where there is very strong evidence of an ongoing vulnerability to hate crime. This is to ensure that as many places of worship as possible are able to access funding for protective security measures.
If you represent a mosque that has received funding previously, we encourage you to apply for guarding services if you feel that security guarding would benefit your mosque and attending worshippers.
Charity status
Places of worship and associated faith community centres are normally charitable and required by law to register as charities if their income from all sources is over 5,000 a year. Some churches are currently excepted from registration.
If you are lawfully exempt, you will be required as part of your application to include a written confirmation of your exemption and the justification for your exemption. You must upload this written confirmation to the application form on your organisations letter headed paper.
If you are not registered as a charity and are not exempt, you will need to register with the Charity Commission before applying to the scheme.
If you would like advice and support on completing the application to register as a charity, are unsure about whether you need to register, or have any other queries about registering as a charity, please contact, faithoutreach@charitycommission.gov.uk.
What the schemes cover
The types of physical protective security measures available are listed below, but you do not need to decide which measures you would like to apply for now. If your application is successful, a survey of your place of worship will be carried out. During this site survey, Esotec Limited will discuss with you the most appropriate measures for your particular site, based on recommendations made to them by the police DOCO (Designing Out Crime Officer):
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CCTV (fixed cameras, not pan-tilt cameras)
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secure fencing and/or railings (no more than 2.1m high)
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manually operated pedestrian and vehicle gates
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door hardening, locks and mailbox / mail bag
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reinforcing glazed windows (with anti-shatter film or bars/grilles only)
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intruder alarms including integrated smoke/heat detection
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door entry access control (fob or keypad)
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video intercom systems
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lighting (building mounted)
If your application is successful, the schemes will cover the cost of all security equipment (as agreed by Esotec Limited and the Home Office) and installation at your place of worship. However, the schemes cannot be used to fund:
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required planning permission
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general building improvements
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standard security upgrades (for example, if measures installed under this scheme become outdated after a number of years)
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measures to tackle anti-social behaviour, lead theft, or other criminality unconnected with hate crime
Muslim places of worship and their associated faith community centres are also eligible for security guarding services under the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme. Applicants can decide if they would prefer to apply for physical protective security measures or security guarding services only, or both. A similar site survey will be carried out for successful applicants to decide the most appropriate guarding regime for each location. The supplier of security guarding services will be announced later in the year.
Submitting an application
In order to submit a valid application, you will need to show that:
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hate crimes or hate incidents have happened at your place of worship, or
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hate crime has happened in your local area and you think there is a high chance that your place of worship could also be targeted
You will need to provide evidence that the community at your place of worship is vulnerable to the kind of hate crime that targets people because of their religion and race.
Any crime can be classed as a hate crime if the offender has demonstrated, or been motivated by, hostility based on:
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race
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religion
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disability
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sexual orientation
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transgend