Q: I've registered to use the Online Faculty System and confirmed my email address, but still cannot gain access to apply for Faculty?
A: Your DAC Secretary needs to approve your registration before you can gain access to the Online Faculty System and apply for Faculty. They will have been contacted by email automatically following your registration, therefore you do not need to inform them yourself.
You will receive an email as soon as your DAC Secretary has approved your registration.
Q: I am not receiving my emails
A: Sometimes, email applications see emails sent from the Online Faculty System as spam or junk and stop them from being delivered to your inbox. When this happens, we need to help the email application learn that these are not unwanted messages.
This will depend on what email application you use to manage your email account, but most folders will either be called Junk or Spam. Check any folders that have a name similar to this and see if the email is in there. You may be presented with an option to mark the email as not junk or spam, otherwise you can drag the email into your main Inbox.
To help stop this happening in the future, it's a good idea to try and do what's referred to as whitelisting our email address. This effectively adds our email address as a safe sender and your email application knows to accept emails from us in the future.
Campaign Monitor has a great article showing how to whitelist email addresses in different email applications:
Q: How do I change my email address?
You can change your email address through the "My Account" section of the website. You can also change your address included on your profile and your email settings.
Q: I forgot my password and clicked "Recover Password" to obtain a new one, but I am still having problems with my login.
A: Make sure that you type the new password rather than "copying and pasting" it in, as you might accidentally pick-up blank spaces which the computer thinks is part of the password. If you are still experiencing problems afterwards, contact your DAC or the Project Officer.
Q: I've registered to the online system for my church, but now I need to apply for Faculty for a different building. What do I do?
A: Contact your DAC who will be able to add more church buildings to your online account.
Q: I am trying to apply for Faculty, but I cannot find the "start" button?
A: As an applicant, when you registered for the Online Faculty System, you were asked to select your church building(s). If you did not select your building(s), you will not be able to see the "start" button.
Contact your DAC. They will add the correct church building(s) to your online account.
Q: I want to apply for a number of works at once, some of which are on List A, some on List B, and some of which need Full Faculty. How should I proceed?
A: Where a project consists of various elements, some of which come within List A and/or B and others need a faculty, the parish should seek the advice of the DAC, and subsequently a faculty, in respect of the entire project.
Q: Where can I access a copy of ChurchCare's guidance on Statements of Significance and Needs?
A: Click here to download a PDF copy of our guidance on Statements of Significance and Statements of Needs or go to our website for more information.
Q: The Online Faculty System website does not load properly on my web-browser. Why?
A: This website was designed to operate on computers running modern mainstream internet browsers, specifically Chrome, Internet Explorer 9+, Safari and Firefox.
If you are experiencing technical difficulties accessing this website, start by downloading the latest version of your internet browser. If you are still experiencing problems afterwards, contact the Cathedral and Church Buildings Division, Archbishops' Council.
Q: How do I submit electronic copies of my architectural drawings online?
A: Architectural firms can supply their drawings to you in any format you want. Ask for:
- PDF files
- No larger than 5MB
- A3 size
- Colour
Some dioceses have also chosen to continue accepting printed drawings alongside online submissions from parishes without internet access. Contact your DAC for advice.
Click here for instructions on uploading the drawings to the online system.
Q: How do I submit copies of scanned documents and photographs online?
A: If you need to scan written documents (e.g. Letters), make sure that:
- The file is no larger than 5MB
- The file is saved either in a PDF or a TIFF format
- The document is scanned in Black and White
- The document is scanned at a resolution of 300 dpi
If you need to scan photographs, make sure that:
- The file is no larger than 5MB
- The file is saved either in a PDF or a JPEG format
- The photograph is scanned in Grayscale or Colour
- The photograph is scanned at a resolution of 200 dpi
Q: Now that I have started filling in my forms online, I want to be able to print them off. How can I do that?
A: Click here for instructions on how to open and print the online forms as PDF and Microsoft Word document
Q: I submitted my proposal to my DAC and now I can no longer upload any new documents. Is this normal?
A: Yes. As soon as you send your proposal to your DAC for advice, you will no longer be able to upload any new documents until your DAC returns your proposal to you with comments.
If you have received new information about your proposal (e.g. PCC resolution) which you think your DAC needs to see, you should contact your DAC by telephone or email so that:
- They can return your proposal re-activating your permissions to upload new documents
- OR they can upload the document for you
Q: What type of Supporting Documents should I provide with my proposal?
A: The documentation that you will need to submit with your application will vary according to the nature of your proposal.
They could include:
- Plans of the church and/or churchyard locating the proposed works
- Plans, sections and elevations of the church as existing
- Plans, sections and elevations of the church as proposed
- Photographs of the church and/or churchyard to set the proposal in context
- Photographs of those areas affected by the proposal
- Statements in support of your proposal
- Tender price from the church architect
- Estimates/quotations from the chosen contractors
- Architect’s specification for any alterations/ remedial works required
- Plan of the church showing the location of existing equipment and wiring routes
- Details of any new items/equipment to be installed and/or new fixings and wiring routes
- Any feedback from statutory consultees, such as Historic England, Victorian Society or other amenity societies
- Correspondence with PCC's insurance provider.
Contact your DAC office for more advice and specific requirements.