The Church Times Green Church Awards have two objectives: to celebrate the remarkable efforts made in recent years by individuals and congregations to offset the damage being done to the earth, and to set good examples before others who might be inspired to follow suit.

2024 awards

The 2024 Church Times Green Church Awards are organised jointly with the Church of England’s environment programme, the Methodist Church, the Salvation Army, and Eco Congregation Scotland. They are open to church groups and church schools of any denomination.

There are seven award categories:

• Green building award: projects that have significantly reduced the carbon footprint of an existing building or strengthened its climate resilience, or a new building built to high environmental standards which can be shown to have been the better option than refurbishment. Prize: £1000.
• Land and nature award: projects creating space for wildlife and encourage biodiversity. Prize: £1000.
• Congregation and community action: projects where a church, school, or other group has taken a leading part in environmental action, benefiting the wider community as well as its own. Prize: £1000.
• Green champion award: nominations are invited for an individual who has made a significant difference through their environmental efforts. Prize: £1000.
• Training and education award: projects promoting understanding about some aspect of environmental action, or destruction, and its impact, either at home or on the international community. Prize: £1000.
• Green health award: Projects making an active connection between faith, nature and health. Projects may be run by a faith organisation in association with a local health practice or charity. Prize: £1000.
• Action on a shoestring award: projects where a church, school, or other group has achieved a great deal with a little. Prize: £1000.

The panel of judges will be looking for projects that have made a positive change in the past two years in buildings, outdoors, and in the community. A building project can be nominated even if it hasn’t been completed, with as much information as possible about known and projected environmental impacts. A group can enter in one or more categories.

The deadline for entries is 30 June 2024. Details of shortlisted entries will be published in the Church Times during the summer. The awards ceremony will take place during Creationtide next autumn, venue to be announced. Photos and videos to accompany entries are encouraged.

Nominate a project for the 2024 awards here

We are pleased to announce the involvement of partner organisations and sponsors, chief among whom is Ecclesiastical Insurance.

Helen Richards, church operations director at Ecclesiastical Insurance, said: “As a company dedicated to making a positive environmental impact, I’m delighted that Ecclesiastical is able to sponsor the Green Church Awards 2024. We’ve been protecting churches for more than 135 years, and we know that action is needed to help preserve these amazing buildings from climate change for generations to come.

“There are amazing projects and initiatives taking place in churches in communities all around the country helping to tackle climate change, and these awards are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate them. We’d encourage churches to submit their entries and share the work they are doing for a chance to receive £1,000 to support their work.”

Other partners include:

• A Rocha UK (Eco Church) 
  “Church land has enormous potential for serving God by helping restore nature, cut carbon and ministering to the local community, so we are delighted to support these awards to inspire and encourage churches to fully include their land as part of their mission” (Andy Atkins, CEO of A Rocha UK)
  
  
• Inspired Efficiency 
  “Inspired Efficiency have been delivering decarbonisation projects and advice to churches on how to reach Net Zero in their buildings for 13 years. We are passionate about taking climate change and know that heritage buildings are not ‘too difficult’ to achieve this but can be a leading example of how to decarbonise well within the hub a community. We are proud to be supporting The Church Times Green Church Awards and look forward to learning more from the entrants and their inspiring efforts” (Matt Fulford, Inspired Efficiency)
  
  
• Ecology Building Society
  
  
• The Conservation Foundation

2017 winners

Green Building Award

St Wenn, Bodmin, Cornwall. A small, rural church that partnered with the next door school to install and share a biomass heating system. Most of work was done by volunteers. Bishop Nicholas said: “It is a beautiful example of the pastoral mission of the parish church being care for the community and the members of the community caring for and becoming the parish church.”

Biodiversity award

St James’s, Finchampstead, Berks. Volunteers converted scrubland into a biodiverse churchyard extension and garden of remembrance. The land was transformed into a wildlife haven, including bat boxes, bee hotels and wild flowers. The judges praised the wide range of small measures and community engagement.

Green Congregation award

St John’s, Shildon, Durham, the Shildon Alive! Guerilla Gardening Team. The congregation started this project in 2014, counteracting decline in community engagement and increase in vandalism. Over 1000 young people have been involved in planting in 70 locations. The scheme also has two community gardens, a food waste scheme and gave out 300 bags of fresh fruit in 2016.

Green Champion Award (shared equally by all those shortlisted)

Martyn Goss (diocese of Exeter); Br Hugh Cobbett SSF (Hilfield Friary); Victoria Gilbert (St Catherine’s, Burbage); Suzanne Dalton (St Chad’s, Far Headingley); Judith Allinson (St John’s Methodist Church, Settle).

Green Futures award

Holy Trinity, Tulse Hill, London, described as an innovative church hall building using only recycled material which engaged with the entire community. The project is using straw bales and will be the first straw-bale church building in Europe and the largest straw-bale building in London.

2017 shortlist

Green Building award               Sponsored by Good Energy
Gloucester Cathedral; Holy Trinity, Bradford on Avon; Holy Trinity, Tulse Hill; St Wenn’s, Bodmin. 
Read more: Green Building award

Green Congregation award              Sponsored by Ecclesiastical Insurance
Garden design and development team (Campoverde Church, Spain); Inverkip Church Eco-group; St Catherine’s Environment Group (St Catherine’s, Burbage); Shildon Alive! Guerrilla Gardening Team (St John’s, Shildon) 
Read more: Green Congregations

Biodiversity award               Sponsored by Levy Restaurants UK
Bradford Cathedral; OASIS Community Church, Worksop; St Asaph’s, Denbighshire; St James’s, Finchampstead; St John’s, Sharow.  
Read more: Biodiversity award

Green Champion award               Sponsored by Shrinking the Footprint
Martyn Goss (diocese of Exeter); Br Hugh Cobbett SSF (Hilfield Friary); Victoria Gilbert (St Catherine’s, Burbage); Suzanne Dalton (St Chad’s, Far Headingley); Judith Allinson (St John’s Methodist Church, Settle).  
Read more: Green Champions

Green Futures award              Sponsored by Shrinking the Footprint
Baildon Methodist Church; Hamutua Quarterly Meeting Friends Church, Kenya; Sheddingdean Baptist Church; St Mary the Virgin, Cannington.