Anglican church considers legal overhaul to free up funds

Saturday, 30 May 2026

Restoration of Christ Church Cathedral is on hold pending further funding.

Christchurch’s Anglican diocese is looking at legal moves to free up funds from its parishes, but any changes are unlikely to a provide quick fix for its mothballed cathedral.

The church has come under pressure to put more money into restoring Christ Church Cathedral while it is asking for more public cash to fill the project’s $45 million funding gap.

On Wednesday, Christchurch city councillors voted to put another $15m of ratepayers’ money into the cathedral, if the Government agrees to match it. The sum would come on top of the $10m already agreed by the council.

Christchurch Anglican bishop Peter Carrell.

In June 2024 the diocese, before it mothballed the restoration project due to a funding shortfall, said it would look into reviewing the Church Property Act 2003. The act sets out who controls which church assets in the diocese.

Asked by The Press about the fate of the review after two years, Bishop Peter Carrell said a progress report will go to Synod, the council that governs the diocese, in September.

About 285 properties plus financial investments and estates are managed by the Church Property Trustees.

Many of the properties, including unused and under-used sites, are in the hands of individual parishes, which must give permission for them to be sold or leased. Some are held under the terms of a trust.

Carrell said the review comes “with the intention of seeking revision of the act through Parliament to align the act with present church life in the Diocese of Christchurch”.

“It is possible that changes to the act, if agreed by Parliament, would make it possible for parishes to have wider choice about the disposal of assets, including sharing proceeds of property sales with other parts of the Diocese.

“Synod will need to agree to the changes to be proposed to Parliament, and it is not envisaged that Synod would agree to changes which limited the ability of parishes to determine use of their assets in favour of a Diocesan override on their decision-making powers.”

The Riccarton site of the demolished St James Anglican church is for sale. The parish has merged with St Martin’s in Spreydon, and the combined parish will decide what happens to the proceeds of the land sale.

Church Property Trustees has eight members elected by Synod and is chaired by the bishop.

Its property portfolio has an insured value of $561m, and the diocese says its market value is about half that.

The Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Trust (CCPT) needs another $95m to finish its planned partial restoration and reopen the building. It is confident of raising about $50m but says it needs more public funding to restart work.

A total of $90m has already been spent. This has come from the church’s insurance payout, taxpayers ($25m), donors ($24m), and ratepayers ($3m with another $7m to come).

The church has indicated it will put in another $20m from selling two properties including the transitional cathedral, while donors have pledged another $20m.