The Church of England says plans to turn a listed former church into a mosque cannot go ahead – due to a covenant on the building.

A planning application to change the use of St John's Church in Hanley back to a place of worship was approved by Stoke-on-Trent City Council last week.

But the CofE says a restrictive covenant on the grade II*-listed building prevents it from being used a place of worship for any other religion – regardless of any planning consent. The Zamir Foundation submitted plans to turn the Town Road church into a mosque and community centre last year, after the building was purchased for £140,000.

During the planning process, the CofE contacted the council and explained the situation with the covenant. Council officers then relayed this information to the applicants, saying they would need to secure a deed of variation from the CofE in order to lawfully use the building as a mosque.

St John's, which dates back to 1788, has not been used as a church since the 1980s (LDRS).

But the CofE says it would not agree to such a variation to the covenant. Legal action could be taken to enforce the covenant.

A spokesperson for the Church Commissioners for England said: "The Church Commissioners is aware that planning permission has been granted for changes to St John's Hanley. We support former churches being used for community purposes, but a restrictive covenant prohibits the use of the building as a place of worship other than as a church, and the Commissioners has explained this to the owner."

St John's, which dates back to 1788, has not been used as a church since the 1980s. After it closed due to concerns over the building's structure, its graveyard was exhumed to make way for the neighbouring Potteries Shopping Centre.

In 2009, the Diocese of Lichfield sold the derelict building to Church Converts, which had plans to convert it into a restaurant. While these proposals never materialised, the restrictive covenant dating back to the sale still applies. It is understood that similar covenants are applied whenever the CofE sells a former church.

St John's was later turned into an antiques centre and cafe, but the business closed in 2020 and up until now the building has remained out of lawful use.

The Zamir Foundation has plans to use St John's for a number of community services, including a museum, a multi-faith library and a women's only gym, in addition to it being used as a mosque. But plans for internal alterations, including partition walls, have been dropped after the council told the applicants that this work would require listed building consent.

The Zamir Foundation has been approached for a comment on the covenant issue but has not responded.

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