“One solution to this issue is to take away all administrative and financial functions from the dioceses and put these into a slimmed-down central body accountable to the Church Commissioners. The bishops and archdeacons, thus unburdened from administration and finance, Read more…
“But this rubbish is merely the tip of the iceberg. Let’s stand it up with some figures. In 1959, there were 13,075 stipendiary clergy and 250 diocesan support staff in the Church of England. In 2022, there are 7210 stipendiary Read more…
“Much recent Cofe decline appears driven by a culture at the centre deficient in evidence-based decision-making. The result is that, perversely, parishes are neglected. “Following the money” (as financially trained volunteers from the campaign group I belong to, Save The Read more…
“The situation can be salvaged but, as with the NHS, a radical change of direction is required. The closure of churches during the first lockdown was a major error – a missed opportunity to help people in real distress . Read more…
This Christmas Eve, when people pour out of the pub and head in a delightful whisky-and-ginger fug to Midnight Mass to belt out their old favourites, they could get a shock. The church doors may well be shut, the vicar Read more…
The following are short stories from parishes up and down the country., submitted by STP supporters. Parishes are the centres of so many communities at Christmas time. They are places of reflection, sanctuary and shared joy.
“THE first challenge is recognising that each rural area is distinctive. Central church bodies tend to view rural churches through urban or suburban lenses. This is to the detriment not only of the life and mission of rural churches, but Read more…
“Thankfully, not so. In answer to a parliamentary question from Ben Bradshaw MP (PQ 26686) on 28 June, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Andrew Selous MP, replied on behalf of the Church Commissioners that the 24 per cent of the English Read more…
The PCC have therefore decided that continuing payment of the Common Fund (2023 – £7,754) is unsustainable and, until they know the cost of stage 2 of the repairs to the tower in July 2023, they will limit their Common Fund contributions to £100 per month from January to June 2023.
St Cuthbert’s Darlington has been awarded £2,000,000 by the CofE to renovate the building and to appoint a pioneer chaplain, youth worker, operations director, and director of music, all for a period of 5 years. The current congregation is very Read more…