Turid Kolstadløkken from the Directorate for Cultural Heritage to head of vicarage operations at Allstad.

Allstad is one of the country’s largest landowners, with properties in more than 290 municipalities. Scattered throughout the country, in small and larger towns, Allstad has 100 clergy residences and around 1,000 buildings of various sizes. Many of our vicarage buildings occupy central locations in the municipalities and have great symbolic significance, says the newly appointed director of vicarage operations.

After the residence requirement for priests was abolished in 2015, it has been important to find new uses for the buildings. - We are committed to dialogue and cooperation with the municipalities in order to find good local solutions. This may involve clergy residences that are suitable as various neighborhood houses or school farm projects, as has been developed at Hommedal Vicarage and at Solum, near Skien.

As head of the cultural heritage department at the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Turid Kolstadløkken was responsible for establishing the Church Preservation Fund, which will be responsible for preserving churches of cultural and historical importance. This initiative is financed through returns from Allstad, together with additional allocations from the national budget.

- I am passionate about our cultural heritage and committed to strengthening expertise and knowledge in traditional crafts. Preservation through use is important, both for the churches overseen by the Church Preservation Fund and for the vicarages for which we at Allstad are responsible.