Our third instalment on 'Changing Britain' looks at patterns of church openings and closures around the country. Following the statistics is a comment from Monica Hill.

Churches - Openings and Closures

Re-printed from Brierley Consultancy's FutureFirst, June 2014 issue, with kind permission.

As the map indicates there have been more openings of churches than closures in the 30 years since 1989 in the West Midlands and the South East of England, and the reverse elsewhere.

There have been almost 2,900 new churches started between 2010 and 2015 in England, or about 600 a year, three new churches every two days! It is also true that churches close. Over the last 5 years, 1,400 churches have closed altogether, or four every three days, leaving a net growth of some 1,500 churches in the 5 years to 2015.

Where are these extra newly-started churches? The number varies by region, but there are some in every part of the country:

170 in the North                                 170 in East Anglia
200 in the Yorkshires                         370 in South East North
270 in the North West                       410 in Greater London
250 in the East Midlands                   330 in South East South
370 in the West Midlands                  320 in the South West

These new churches are mostly one of three kinds:

• New congregations started by some of the New Church streams (such as Vineyard, Newfrontiers, Ground Level or Salt and Light).
• Fresh Expressions of churches, which are often Church of England (which has 900 across England) or Methodist (which has 800), but might also be Baptist or Salvation Army.
• Black Majority Churches, especially if they are in London where some 400 such churches started between 2005 and 2012. Catholic chaplaincy churches are also important in the capital.

Invariably these fresh congregations have good community links, which is where much of their support comes from. All three groups given above are beginning new church "plants", not trying to revive small or declining churches, or particularly trying to grow existing congregations. Nearly all are lay-led initially (although half of Fresh Expressions are led by an ordained person). Theological conviction is the main motivation for starting these churches; most of these new churches are evangelical. Different ethnicities are also involved.

Questions: Are the established forms of churches now becoming outmoded? Should scarce resources be mainly allocated to these new models?

Source: UK Church Statistics, No 2, 2010-2010, ADBC Publishers, Tonbridge, Kent, 2014.

Topical Comment

Monica Hill

This research finding on the planting of new churches may initially seem to be good news, at a time when we hear of so many of the traditional denominations closing down churches and meeting places where numbers have declined below an economic level.

The number of churches in England (40,300) remains the same in 2015 as it was in 1979. But the shape and location of them has changed somewhat. Many of the new church plants have not re-used traditional buildings but created or hired new ones often more suited to the task. There are also many which have started again as the early church did and are meeting in houses.

Redundant Church Buildings

Selling older redundant buildings to fund fresh outreach in other areas has often seemed a natural and valid outcome and a good idea showing good stewardship. There was a time when the closure of church buildings was rationalised as using the money 'to plant churches where the people are'. There was almost a blind spot to the need for continued mission to meet the needs of newcomers to the area (or perhaps a lack of people with a vision). So those areas which already had plenty of churches often received more – not quite the intended interpretation of the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25!

Where is the Growth?

Not all areas of the country are benefiting from these closures and sales. Both the North and the South West have been closing between 300 and 400 more churches than are being opened in those areas in this time period.

Neither has growth been consistent over time. There was specific growth bursts between 1995 and 2000 and between 2010 and 2015, but there were also periods of decline between 2000 and 2005 and further decline is expected in the period between 2015 and 2020 unless this can be averted in some way.

But there are three kinds of growth identified:

1. Immigrant churches, particularly those from Africa, sparked off the earlier growth wave. The Redeemed Christian Church of God started as a 'reverse mission' movement, and it now has some of the largest churches in the country and is gradually moving beyond its Nigerian base. Prior to this, there had also been national churches created following World War II – for instance when there were sufficient Poles in Britain to warrant a church presence, or after the influx of West Indian economic refugees in the 60s and 70s. But these churches were each created from a very different base – and the latter are no longer growing at the rate of their initial expansion in the 1960s and '70s.
2. The traditional denominational churches have been experimenting with Fresh Expressions in the last ten years. Anglicans and Methodists have been particularly successful and these have increased six-fold in the last 5 years. 41% attend from outside the church with a further 35% coming back to church – overall 95,000 were attending these kinds of church in 2015. Attendance at 'Messy Church' showed the greatest increase with its emphasis upon fun, fellowship, food and families in a welcoming, worshipful environment. Although many of these are within existing churches an increasing number are in different venues and are led by lay people.
3. The new independent church streams (known as the 'New Churches') commenced in the 70s, grew eight-fold in the 80s and then doubled in the 90s with an increasing number of newer streams continuing to be created. They have concentrated upon neighbourhood, community and family concepts and many of the fully independent churches eventually link with others to form a stronger base.

The Bad News

Overall churches are getting smaller as the size of most congregations is reducing (on average by 37%), with a number of regions losing more than half the number of Christians attending places of worship. Death (or 'passing on into glory') without replacement by younger people accounts for much of this membership reduction as the attendees get older. But there are also an increasing number of older people who are becoming disillusioned or leaving, although a number do continue to practise their faith in small groups.

In 1989, UK Church Statistics estimated total church attendance in England as 4,186,000. By 2012 this number had dropped to 3,018,600 and is likely to drop to 2,708,700 by 2020.

Methodists have seen more than half (48%) of their churches close during this period, but they are still expected to have more than 3,500 churches in 2020. The Anglicans have closed over 1,000 churches (that is one in every ten days), but church building closures are more difficult because of their links with the state, so they will still have over 16,000. The URC are closing nearly two a week and the Catholics one a week.

So what of the future?

• Can we learn anything from this information on the future shape of Christianity in this country?
• When you pray about the situation do you get any answers you can share with others?
• Is God answering the prayers of his people by giving them a challenge?
• Are the remnant listening and responding in the right way by becoming mobilised and taking action before anno domini takes over?

Please add your comments.

Previous instalments:

The Rise of Secularism: YES, I have NO religion!

Transmitting the Faith