A STEVENSTON church which was earmarked for closure appears to have been granted a 'stay of execution'.

The Church of Scotland has confirmed that Ardeer Parish Church has not been permanently closed - despite parts of the building being boarded up in recent weeks.

It had previously been suggested that the building would be closed as part of a wider mission plan for the Church of Scotland's buildings and congregations in the Three Towns and the Garnock Valley.

Two churches in Stevenston, Ardeer Parish Church and the High Kirk, were due to close in December, with the two congregations uniting with that of Livingstone Parish Church in New Street to form a single charge, based at Livingstone, covering all of Stevenston.

But Stevenston High Kirk was later handed a reprieve until the summer of 2024 after a meeting of the presbytery's planning committee.

READ MORE: Stevenston High Kirk to request delayed closure date

The delay was rubber-stamped because the Kirk Sessions of the three congregations set to be merged were unable to meet prior to the original closure date.

Reference was made to "the situation at Ardeer", which has become a major issue around the planned merger.

The church building there has been closed since early 2021 because of the need for repairs of around £200,000 - in addition to some work that has already taken place.

Ardeer has also fallen short in "ministry contributions" of more than £75,000.

Since then, members of the Ardeer congregation have been attending Livingstone Parish Church.

In April 2022 it was proposed that Ardeer Church should be dissolved so that no burden of the building, nor financial shortcomings, would be passed over to Livingstone Church.

However, that proposal raised questions over what should happen to money given by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic Scotland and the National Churches Trust to refurbish Ardeer's buildings.

Around £400,000 was given to help restore the building, and it's thought that lottery funding will have to be returned in the event of the church not re-opening.

The Herald has since contacted the Church of Scotland to seek clarity on "the situation" and what this means for the church buildings in Stevenston.

They confirmed that the building has not permanently closed, and that the boards on parts of the building have been placed due to cracking on parts of the structure.

A spokesman said that while no final decision has been made, the current plan is that the building will be maintained and used on occasions throughout the year, even though the church's congregation may still unite with another.

No fears were raised that any lottery funding will have to be paid back in future.

A Church of Scotland spokesman said: “Ardeer Church in Stevenston is not permanently closed, and while there are boards on a number of windows, this is because cracks were found on the perspex underneath.

“This temporary measure is aimed at preventing further deterioration.

“We can confirm that grant funding was received to carry out refurbishment work to the building, and the terms and conditions of this award will be met and fulfilled.

“While Ardeer Church is not hosting regular services on a Sunday, the building will be used for special services throughout the year.

“The local presbytery is currently facilitating discussions which could see the congregation potentially uniting with another local church.

“No final decision has been made.”

The current mission plan, passed by the former presbytery of Arran and Ardrossan still includes the closure of the High Kirk in Stevenston.