ATTENDANCE at services at Christmas exceeded pre-pandemic levels in greater than a dozen English cathedrals, in keeping with an investigation in The Times this week.
Of the 26 cathedrals that provided data on attendance levels in 2019 — the yr before the pandemic began — 13 experienced a rise within the number of individuals attending Christmas services.
Southwark Cathedral was certainly one of those at which attendance this yr was higher than in 2019. On Wednesday, the Sub-Dean, Canon Michael Rawson, told the Church Times that “various things conspire together” to attract people in: “Live music in a shocking constructing, the standard of welcome where people feel that they will likely be noticed and taken care of, and the best way that the services are put together.”
He also referred to the amount of Christmas services as one other factor: multiple carol services for specific causes or charities helped the cathedral to achieve out into the community, he said.
Of the 30 cathedrals that provided data to The Times, 24 reported that the scale of congregations had risen between 2022 and 2023.
The Acting Dean of Lichfield, the Rt Revd Jan McFarlane, told The Times: “Our experience this Christmas leads us to conclude that we shouldn’t be nailing down the lid on the Church of England’s coffin any time soon.”
In the C of E, attendance has risen since 2020, but has not yet reached pre-pandemic levels (News, 17 November 2023).
The Dean of St Albans, the Very Revd Jo Kelly-Moore, who chairs the Association of English Cathedrals, said in a press release that the rise in attendance was indicative of “the central place that cathedrals hold within the cities and dioceses they serve, and is undoubtedly a result also of the increasingly varied ways by which our cathedrals are committed to offering people of all faiths and none the prospect to have interaction with their stories”.
She said: “January, the season of Epiphany, offers a continued likelihood to welcome people, and cathedrals have began the New Year with plenty of opportunities on offer. Here at St Albans Cathedral, for instance, we have now higher January service attendances, thus far, than last yr, and far higher visitor footfall.
“Many parish churches are reporting the identical increases over Christmas as they, too, have engaged with their communities creatively. All this offers great encouragement as we welcome recent people and grow back from the impact of the worldwide pandemic.”
Read more on this story on this week’s Press column here
