A NEW vicarage could be built in Holbeach to help overcome problems of recruiting a new parish priest.
All Saints’ Church has been without a vicar since Canon John Wickstead retired last May and Lincoln Diocese says part of the problems with filling the vacancy have been due to a lack of unsuitable accommodation.
They say the current vicarage is too large, energy inefficient, costly to maintain and the layout is unfit for its dual purpose as family home and a workplace visited by the public.
The comments were included in an application for a new four-bedroom vicarage considered by South Holland District Council planning committee last night.
Members were told the old vicarage does not comply with the Church of England’s design guide for vicarages borne out of a growing number of physical attacks on members of the clergy in their own homes.
The guidelines specify the “office” part of the building should be separate from the vicar’s living accommodation.
A report to the planning committee said: “This type of layout is not practically achievable within the existing vicarage.”
And Holbeach Parochial Church Council summarised its support for the plans, saying: “We are now facing a lengthy vacancy which poses many difficulties and may have an adverse effect on many aspects of church life and the life of the parish.
“We have been through an interviewing process, when we met two candidates, but both expressed serious concerns about the lack of a suitable place to live.”
Members were recommended to approve the planning application, which features a number of alterations, including one less bedroom, than a previous plan.
If approved the four-bedroom home with detached double garage would be built within the grounds of the existing vicarage and a new access would be created off Church Walk, including new entrance gates.
But members will also consider a number of objections, including one from Holbeach and District Civic Society describing the proposed gates as “more appropriate to a high security prison”.
Other concerns relate to new building within the conservation area and the impact on the views of the church from Church Street and Church Walk, as well as future use of the old vicarage as flats or a home of multiple occupation.