The substantial decline in participants in the Catholic service in Flanders means that the use, management and maintenance of parish churches are ever more difficult. The integration of a new, secular use is often proposed as a solution to the problem of obsolete church buildings. This integration can be through shared use, which means that the church is still used for religious services with a secular function available through a spatial division in the church interior, or by planning activities at different times. There can also be an adaptive reuse of the church for an entirely new programme. In this case, ‘deconsecration’ (official removal of its religious function) and a change of ownership is considered as a logical consequence.

In order to help church fabrics and municipalities with the decision making process as to the future of parish churches, the Flemish Government launched a research program (2016 – 2018), supervised by the Team Flemish Government Architect and the Agency Immovable Heritage, to conduct feasibility studies for the transformation of parish churches. Tv Trace was one of the teams that was commissioned to execute such feasibility studies. In total, we investigated the opportunities for adaptive reuse of 18 churches:

- St-Joseph church, Harelbeke

- St-Joseph church, Aalst

- St-Amandus church, Willebroek

- St-Petrus church, Kruibeke

- St-Clemens church, Hoogstraten

- Magdalena church, Bruges

- St-Odulphus church, Zoutleeuw

- H. Cross church, Boekhoute

- St-Blatius church, Leopoldsburg

- St-Martinus church, Merelbeke

- St-Joseph church, Niel

- St-Martinus church, Hasselt

- Our Lady church, Kortenberg

- Our Lady of Fatima, Sint-Truiden

- St-Joseph church, Ghent

- St-Martinus church, Deinze

- Church of Our Lady of the poor, Hasselt

- St-Bernardus church, Lubbeek