Parochial Church Councils should be aware of the provisions of the Parochial Church Council's (Powers) Measure 1956 in relation to land and property. The 1956 Measure (Section 6) deals with the way in which (i) an interest in land (other than a short lease – this means a Lease for a term not exceeding one year or any tenancy from week to week, from month to month, from quarter to quarter or from year to year) and (ii) any interest in personal property to be held on permanent trusts are to be acquired, held and disposed of by a Parochial Church Council.
The 1956 Measure provides that no new property falling within these classes is to be acquired by a Parochial Church Council without the consent of the Diocesan Board of Finance. Further any such property must be vested in the Diocesan Board of Finance.
As such a Parochial Church Council cannot own property falling within these classes however this does not make the Diocesan Board of Finance the beneficial owner of the property. The beneficial owner is the Parochial Church Council and the role of the Diocesan Board of Finance is to hold the legal title as custodian trustee on the Parochial Church Council's behalf. Accordingly the Parochial Church Council is the managing trustee and has the powers of management and administration.
Accordingly if the Parochial Church Council intends to acquire a piece of land or property (be it donated to them or purchased) by virtue of the 1956 Measure, the consent of the Diocesan Board of Finance will need to be obtained and the legal title required to be vested in the Diocesan Board of Finance.
The 1956 Measure further provides that a Parochial Church Council may not sell, lease, let, exchange, charge or take any legal proceedings in respect of an interest in land (other than a short lease as defined above) or any interest in personal property to be held on permanent trusts without the Diocesan Board of Finance's consent. Therefore if a Parochial Church Council proposes to sell or lease such property as managing trustee it should consider the following points:
- A Parochial Church Council may have acquired or be holding the property on specific trusts set out in a trust deed. These may impose restrictions on how the property or any proceeds of sale may be dealt with. Therefore the terms of the Trust should be checked at an early stage, to ensure that there is a power to sell and that there are no particular restrictions on the use of the sale proceeds.
- It should approach the Diocesan Board of Finance at an early stage for consent under the 1956 Measure. Consent is normally given provided that the Diocesan Board of Finance is satisfied that the sale or letting is in the best interests of the Trust and the Parish, that the terms are satisfactory and that no breach of trust will be caused by such a sale or letting.
- As a Parochial Church Council is a Charity, the sale or letting will be subject to the provisions of Section 119 of the Charities Act 2011, which amongst other things requires the Parochial Church Council to obtain a written report from a qualified surveyor before committing itself to the sale or letting. The Charities (Qualified Surveyor's Report) Regulations 1992 sets out exactly what should be covered and qualified surveyors will be familiar with these regulations.
Dealing with these issues at an early stage means there should be no last minute delays in the completion of the transaction and more importantly the trustees of the Parochial Church Council will have ensured that they have complied with their statutory duties as Charity trustees.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
