church growth
I have an MA in international Business, and I will support the national church and the various community strategies to help those who are struggling with the cost-of-living crises; to support the vulnerable and marginalised, and to look at various strategies to use our resources better to support church growth and clergy wellbeing.
If elected, I would want to speak and vote for: encouraging church growth through parish evangelism and mission; growth in lay discipleship including an emphasis on stewardship; sustainable support for parish ministry including simplification of governance and safeguarding and practical help with HR and policies and procedures; good theological formation for clergy and lay ministers; and would pay keen attention to matters of morale, retention and ongoing clergy training.
I will champion investment in parish ministry, church growth and revitalisation, particularly in rural and coastal communities.
Five years ago we were told that "a building, a stipend, and long costly college-based training" were the "key limiting factors" holding back church growth.
The future shape and mission of the Church of England, the pressures facing parish ministry, questions of finance and sustainability, the ongoing work around safeguarding and redress, clergy wellbeing and conditions of service, the challenges of church growth, and the wider question of how we become a Church that is confident in proclaiming the Gospel while engaging honestly with the society around us, are all issues which require careful and mature discussion.
church growth, by God’s grace. (The estimated average weekly church attendance in 2025 (707,000) was 35% lower than in 2008 (1,100,000), based on Ministry Statistics data on the Church of England’s website);
The General Synod could encourage church growth.
Another area of importance I would like to bring to the table is church growth.
I firmly believe that church growth in our parishes is possible – as is shown by recent data for our diocese.
I am passionate about ministry in rural parishes, and am excited about the many opportunities for church growth that they present.
Through my previous role as a leader and assessor for the DoE award scheme, I can see great potential and opportunities for church growth through active engagement in and support of such schemes.
Our churches also need to be safe for LGBT+ people. iii) Encouraging church growth I began my faith journey in my mid-twenties, following an HIV diagnosis at 24-years-old and was confirmed in 2015, at Southwark Cathedral.
Church Growth: this is driven by a combination of the desire to grow deeper in our relationship with God and an outward focus in the service of our wider community
Mission, Church Growth, and Intentional Discipleship
Having spent fifteen years leading in local churches, I know that true sustainability will not be achieved through administrative cuts or clever finance, but through spiritual renewal, intentional discipleship, and local church growth.
I’m privileged to be on the PCC, the Deanery Synod, the Diocesan Synod, the Diocesan Patronage committee and the Bishop’s Council and have been able to see Bishop Jonathan’s clear missional vision for church growth developing.
Evangelism, Church Growth, and Revitalisation
Champion mission and church growth.
Drawing on my considerable experience in church growth and church planting I would seek to encourage everything that enables more people to hear the gospel, come to faith in Christ and become committed disciples, especially children and young people.
Encouraging evangelism and church growth.
For the past 3+ years I’ve been working as the Strategic Programme Manager in the Diocesan team, helping to bring investment for mission and church growth across all traditions and all parts of the Diocese.
Supporting local parish ministry: As you’d expect from my current job, I am an advocate for targeted investment for church growth across all traditions.
Church Growth.
Numerical church growth is currently framed as a missional priority within the Vision for the Church of England in the 2020s.
A tight budget as the national church should not be an obstacle to church growth but rather call us to prayer and dependency on God to do what we can’t.
Mission & Church Growth: Drawing on practical church planting experience to advocate for evangelism, discipleship, and intercultural community outreach.
I would like to help the General Synod make decisions in these areas that promote church growth whilst minimising inadvertent damage to the church’s legacy.
Evangelism and church growth — including the opportunities facing a mainly rural four- church benefice as significant new housing developments transform our communities.
Real church growth is a theological reality, not a managerial metric, yet national funding is routinely directed into top-down schemes rather than local parishes.
Church Growth continues to generate controversy!
Attended General Synod and spoke on Church Growth,
I know, from the inside, both the extraordinary potential of church growth and multiplication, and the hard realities of doing it well and sustainably. I would bring that same practical, listening approach to Synod: not chasing headlines, but doing the patient work of understanding what actually helps a parish grow, a plant take root, and a congregation flourish. A concern for genuine representation Newcastle Diocese is richly complex.
That is the kind of representative I want to be, listening well to God and to his church, asking honest questions, and making sure Newcastle’s voice, in all its variety, is not lost. Church growth and the years ahead I stand for Synod, above all, because I believe God is calling us to flourish, that we would have life in all its fullness, in numbers, in depth of discipleship, and in our capacity to serve communities that need it.
My commitment to mission and evangelism is grounded in lived experience of local church growth, and my passion for children and young people reflects the New Testament vision of intergenerational discipleship, where the older saints model the Christian walk to the younger.
I am passionate about Creation Care, Church Growth and Safe Churches.
I feel that my experiences will be valuable as General Synod explores lay leadership and future church growth; sustainability of church plants and small worshipping communities; and wrestles with how this impacts on our engagement with the sacraments.
I am excited about some of the church growth in recent years in London and am keen to represent London in all its variety, both poor and rich to General Synod Enabling all people to flourish, including the young: We need to grow younger as a church, providing hope to young people while, at the same time, valuing people of all ages, pastorally and in the gifts that they bring Safeguarding: My experience as a churchwarden helps me know how important a good safeguarding church culture is and how important it is that any systems are clear and breed confidence.
My own experience of parish renewal, church growth, reorganisation and planting enables me to speak from practice, not theory.
Evangelism & Church Growth
Mission, church growth and a positive Christian future Reversing declining attendance should be among the Church of England’s highest institutional priorities.
Mission, evangelism and fresh expressions of church become the main priorities for the next few years, particularly exploring how we might prevent parishes from closing through church growth.
• Experience of church growth, planting and revitalisation
Since 2010, I have worked hard to be a strong, independent voice for parish ministry, church growth, responsible stewardship and support for the most vulnerable.
I want less money spent on bureaucracy and more invested directly in parishes, clergy, church growth and mission.
Building on my experiences in parish churches and church growth, I support
Using my experience in these areas I would look to contribute to the ongoing National Church Governance Programme, so that governance and finance enable the mission of the church, including local church growth and safeguarding.
Reading though past agendas, there is far too little time given to church growth, new forms of ministry, young people, and the Great Commission.
General Synod faces significant questions about mission, governance, ministry, finance, church growth and public witness.
Good leadership by clergy and lay will be key, as will be the pastoral care of our church leaders and her members. “There are many forms of service, but only one Lord” (1Cor12.5): until 21, I was in Anglican ‘Prayer Book’ churches, which I appreciate considerably more now that I know my Bible so much better; in recent years I myself have experienced considerable personal and church growth in the more evangelical churches.
I am standing for General Synod because I offer a younger clergy voice, a commitment to mission among younger generations and practical experience in formation, discernment and church growth.
I have seen that church health leads to church growth, and I would like to see that growth overflow into the planting of new expressions of church, alongside our parish churches.
I believe flourishing clergy, healthy parishes and church growth are intimately connected.
As General Synod continues to address questions around mission and church growth, support for local parishes, safeguarding, discipleship, encouraging younger generations, and stewarding resources wisely, it is vital that decisions are rooted in Scripture, shaped by prayer and informed by the realities of parish life.
Church growth is not simply about strategies, programmes or structures.
I am standing because I want to see change in many areas including safeguarding, inclusion, church growth and a more balanced political landscape.
Recent years have seen: Advances in safeguarding training and practice, and recognition of serious past failings A refreshed desire to see more children and young people in our churches leading to freedom to experiment with new liturgies and fresh expressions of church Increased lay involvement in ministry, both voluntary and professional Since the COVID crisis many parishes have real and ongoing experience of the ‘Quiet Revival’ leading to significant and encouraging church growth Following debate in General Synod, a recent (2026), and welcome, increase in clergy stipends and pensions, and ongoing discussion about clergy retirement provision