List of all funds given to various religious buildings: FOI release

Information requested

A list of all funds given to individual churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, or other religious buildings since 1 May 2021, and what the funds were intended for. Break this down per spend and per individual building e.g. X went to Y church for Z project in 2021.

Response

In August 2020, the New Scots partnership secured funding from the EU’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) for a project to enhance the delivery of the New Scots refugee integration strategy. The project was led by the Scottish Government in partnership with COSLA, Scottish Refugee Council and the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow. As part of the project, in August 2021, we announced the award of £2.8 million funding to over 50 projects were awarded funding to deliver initiatives designed to help New Scots settle in their new communities by promoting employability, education, health, and social and cultural connections. The projects ran between September 2021 and November 2022.

Four of the projects who received funding were led by churches:

Organisation	Project Name	Original Amount Awarded	Total Actually Claimed
Castlemilk Baptist Church	Settling in in Glasgow South	£14,675	£14,675
Glenburn Independent Baptist Church	Serve 2020 – Reading and Learning Together	£9,450	£9,450
Castlemilk Baptist Church	SIYAKHULUMA We Talk Podcast	£2,900	£2,900
Glenburn Independent Baptist Church	Serve2020 – Zoom Club… Zooming Out	£5,000	£5,000

You can find the full list of organistions who were awarded funding here: New Scots Refugee Integration Delivery Project: guidance - gov.scot

In addition, funding was provided to Places of Worship (POW) through The Hate Crime Security Fund. It provided a one-off £500,000 fund for security measures for POW in Scotland that are vulnerable to hate crime. Funding payments were made between November 2021 and March 2022. Further details can also be found via: Hate Crime Security Fund 2021 - 2022 - Impact Funding Partners

In addition you may be interested to know the Scottish Government’s spend for monies issued over the sum of £25,000 is publicly available and in the public domain. This is detailed in a monthly report format. You can view the information here Government spend over £25,000: (www.gov.scot). You can also find further payments provided on the Equality, inclusion and HR fund page, which you can view via this link Equality and Human Rights Fund: projects funded - gov.scot

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because of FOISA exemptions. These exemptions are as follows:

Section 35(1)(a) (prevention or detection of crime) This exemption applies to information, disclosure of which would, or would be likely to, prejudice substantially the prevention or detection of crime.

Given the purpose and intention of the HCSF, this exemption recognises the need to ensure there are appropriate protections for those at risk of hate crime, particularly as a result of divisive narratives that may target faith communities. The safety of places of worship provided funding under the HCSF, in recognition of their vulnerability to hate crime, could potentially be undermined should their specific details be released.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption. We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, there is a greater public interest in ensuring the identity of places of worship awarded funding under the HCSF are adequately protected. This is essential to preventing risk of harm to our faith communities and religious organisations and therefore disclosure of this sensitive information would not be in the public interest.

In addition you may be interested to know I enclose the majority of the information you requested in the form of a link to the Scottish Government’s spend for monies issued over the sum of £25,000: This is detailed in a monthly report format. It is also worth noting, this information is readily available in the public domain. You can view the information here Government spend over £25,000: monthly reports - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). You can also find further payments provided on the Equality, inclusion and HR fund page, which you can view via this link Equality and Human Rights Fund: projects funded - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) and Promoting Equality and Cohesion Fund, details are available online Equality funding: Promoting Equality and Cohesion Fund 2017-2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

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