Church insurance risk

You need to ensure that reasonable precautions are in place at your church to keep it safe for those who use it. To do this, you need to think about what might cause harm to people.

You will then need to decide if the precautions already in place are adequate. If they are not, you may need to identify further action to prevent any danger.  When done formally, this is known as a risk assessment.

Where you are an employer, you must complete these and they will need to meet specific requirements. In particular, they must identify the steps you need to take to comply with relevant health and safety regulations.

It is worth remembering that even if you are not an employer but own or control premises, you may still have to complete detailed risk assessments for certain hazards, for example, asbestos. These will have to meet specific requirements and in some cases you may need specialist assistance with this.

Watch the video below for advice and tips on carrying out risk assessments.

Church Health & Safety Toolkit - Risk Assessment from Ecclesiastical on Vimeo.

Follow safety advice when using ladders – or you could descend into chaos

When working with ladders in churches or old buildings – which often have high ceilings and hard-to-reach places – it’s essential to follow safety guidelines, to prevent accidents and ensure the well-being of those involved. There are some key points to consider.

Choose a ladder that is the appropriate height for the task: ensure it can safely reach the desired surface. Inspect the ladder before each use, checking for any signs of damage or wear and tear, and replace any damaged components.

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Why video surveillance on scaffolding matters

Churches are more than just places of worship: they often serve as community centres, historical landmarks and even home to valuable artwork and artifacts. When scaffolding is erected for maintenance or restoration projects, the vulnerable structures require an extra layer of security. That is where having a video surveillance system monitoring the scaffolding and the building becomes an important deterrent to crime.

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Works of art: value beyond structure

Fine art consultant Patrick Bowen uses his experience in valuing stained glass to propose a new appreciation of its true value – both financially and artistically

In a recent issue of Ecclesiastical and Heritage World (No 97) I drew attention to the possibility of a ‘grey area’ between a structural aspect of a building and a chattel which may be considered as movable property. It is an area of concern to all building surveyors and chattel surveyors.

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Stockport tree surgeon faces a challenge at Mellor Church

Stockport’s local tree surgeons, Myers Tree Care, are often presented with an unusual challenge. On this occasion, they were approached by the bell ringers of St Thomas’s Church at Mellor to see if they could assist in the scheduled maintenance of the clock face.

As a school governor at Mellor School, tree surgeon David Myers was teamed up with the headmaster, Jim Nicholson, and between them took on the challenge with both hands!

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Trees - A Church Guidance Note by Ecclesiastical

Many churchyards contain a large number of beautiful trees. They form a natural part of the overall landscape, bringing wide and many varied benefits as well as contributing to the overall aesthetic appeal of your church premises.

However, trees, if not properly managed, can cause serious damage. In windy conditions, they may fall onto or lash against the church building itself, neighbouring property or cars. Root movement can cause the collapse of boundary walls. Roots can also absorb soil moisture causing foundations to move and walls to crack. They can also encroach upon the foundations of neighbouring buildings, causing subsidence or damage to drains.

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Completing risk assessments for your church

The level of detail in your risk assessment should be proportionate to the risk.

This means that for most small churches which present few hazards the risk assessment can be quite simple based on informed judgement and reference to appropriate guidance.

Small churches

A small church is one with a small building, typically set in a rural location, engaged in normal church activities, for example – usual weekend services, a small congregation, and hosting few – if any – community of fundraising events. Most small churches present few or simple hazards.

Large churches

A large church is one with a large building or that is very active, with a significant number of employees, volunteers and visitors or where there are many diverse activities.

Completing risk assessments is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork - it is about identifying sensible precautions for your church.

Of course, completing risk assessments on their own won’t prevent accidents happening.  It is important that you take the precautions you have identified as being necessary.

Risk management services

We understand how to help organisations manage and reduce their exposure. Our 50-strong specialist in-house team of risk managers offer practical guidance and proportionate solutions. We know that risk is always evolving, so we are constantly looking at different ways to meet today’s challenges to better support organisations.

We’re proud of our service and the team achieve outstanding levels of customer satisfaction, demonstrated by an “excellent” Net Promoter Score (NPS) of +73%.

Risk Capture

Risk management solutions that identify and appraise risks to your assets, people and strategy.

Risk appraisal

Organisations are constantly under strain from new challenges and threats whilst trying to manage the day job. That’s why we aim to make the process of identifying risk as easy as possible Our flexible risk appraisal approach means there’s an option for every organisation. From self-assessment and telephone-based video-enhanced services to face-to-face onsite evaluations – we offer solutions for every customer.

Strategic risk management 

We’re living in a volatile and uncertain world where change is inevitable. With all this uncertainty, how do organisations manage their strategic risks?

Our Enterprise Risk Management support ranges from practical tools, templates and checklists, running webinars and training events through to bespoke consultancy, tailored to meet individual customer needs. Our proposition also includes support with business continuity management. Learn more >

Risk Valuations

Our market-renowned insurance valuations help protect organisations from the risk of underinsurance.

Building valuations

Factors to consider when valuing your property.

With an in-depth knowledge of all building types, whether the construction is medieval or modern, we have the expertise to help organisations set appropriate sums insured to support repair and reinstatement in the event of an insured loss.

Building valuations are an increasingly rare service from insurers and ours are provided at no additional cost. Learn more >

Risk Mitigation

Risk management tools and resources to help organisations to mitigate risk.

Risk Advice Line

Sometimes organisations need to chat with an expert about a specific risk they may have. Our Risk Advice Line provides direct access to a team of risk management specialists who can answer questions, provide practical, tailored guidance and best practice advice. Learn more >

Preferred suppliers

We want to help organisations reduce or avoid risk so we’ve enhanced our Risk Management service by working with market-leading preferred suppliers that provide specialist risk mitigation services. Each one is vetted so you can choose from companies that we know and trust. As an Ecclesiastical customer, you may receive a preferential rate.

For more information about insurance in the church and heritage sector visit ecclesiastical.com

Article with the kind cooperation of Ecclesiastical Insurance

Safeguarding sanctuary: how to control the cost of church security

Steve Holland, managing director of Somerset-based Ace Defence Ltd, has been installing church roof alarms for over 10 years. Here he offers some advice on reducing risk while keeping the costs in check.

Talking to a colleague from Ecclesiastical Insurance recently, I learned that metal theft claims have fallen dramatically in recent years.

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Ecclesiastical urges heritage organisations to be vigilant following National Gallery Just Stop Oil attack

In response to Just Stop Oil activists smashing the glass cover of Diego Velazquez's The Rokeby Venus painting at the National Gallery, Ecclesiastical is urging heritage organisations to be vigilant.

Today, two Just Stop Oil activists were arrested on suspicion of criminal damage after they used safety hammers to smash the glass protecting The Rokeby Venus at the National Gallery in Central London.

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These Aces help combat theft and vandalism at churches

Churches sit at the centre of many communities and theft of lead from the roof or vandalism to the fabric of the building or churchyard causes more than physical damage. The intrusion into the community – and the cost of remedying the resulting harm – can be costly. The cost of making repairs to a church roof can be high and may well have an adverse effect on the general maintenance budget, as well as increasing insurance premiums.

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Wind - tree damage warning - please prepare

Even healthy trees unaffected by defects can fail in extreme weather conditions.Trees can be managed but they cannot be controlled and to live near a tree is to accept some degree of risk. Reasonable risk management generally aims to provide trees that can be regarded as stable in a normal / foreseeable regularly experienced storm event in relation to the situation / context of the tree.

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