Worship numbers drop as churches close, poll finds

Some people may never return to church if their very own church closes its doors, a latest poll has found.

The survey of two,667 UK Christians by National Churches Trust found that in-person church attendance may fall by over 1 / 4 (29%) when a neighborhood church closes. 

Over a fifth (22%) of churchgoers currently attending in-person services said they’d be unwilling or unable to attend a distinct church if their church were to shut. This rose to almost a 3rd amongst churchgoers within the North East (30%) and North West (31%) of England.

Another 7% said they’d worship online provided that their church closed, while the identical proportion said that they’d attend a distinct church but less often than currently. 

Older people aged 65 and over were more than likely to drift away, with only a fifth of this age group (19%) saying they’d discover a latest church to attend as often as they do currently. Even amongst 18 to 24 yr olds, only 1 / 4 (28%) said they’d discover a latest church. 

Eddie Tulasiewicz, Head of Policy and Public Affairs on the National Churches Trust said: “The dramatic impact of church closures is made clear in our opinion poll; it cuts the number of individuals going to church by a 3rd. Older people, lots of whom live alone and for whom attending church helps combats loneliness, are the more than likely to be negatively affected by the closure or their local church.

“Keeping local churches open allows local people to worship in a constructing they know and love. It also keeps local heritage alive for future generations and signifies that local people can proceed to learn from support services, resembling foodbanks, warm spaces and youth clubs and access cultural activities resembling concert events and exhibitions.

“Last yr, the National Churches Trust was in a position to help over 250 urgent church constructing and repair projects with funding of just about £2 million, in the method keeping churches open and safeguarding over 72,000 years of history. Church repairs help create jobs and develop specialist skills of value to the broader construction and heritage sectors.”

The Rev Alisdair Laird is Area Dean and vicar to the twenty rural parishes of South Holderness deanery in East Yorkshire. 

He said: “Once a church constructing is closed, especially in villages and county towns, in some ways the thing that represents the historic heart of that place has been abandoned, for everybody, not only those that share a Christian faith.”

He is all too accustomed to the impact of church closures. Last yr, All Saints Church in Burstwick, a Grade 1 listed church in his area, needed to close and lots of worshippers “felt a deep sadness on the lack of their local historic church”.

“When the pub, the shop, the varsity, and eventually the church are all gone what is definitely left? What does it say about ourselves as human beings, our values and our willingness to be responsible members of a full of life society?” he said.

“Traditionally people, not surprisingly, are inclined to be very focussed on ‘their church’, especially in villages, and are reluctant to be involved beyond that. The excellent news is that we’re finding that individuals listed below are making more effort to ‘go down the road’ to a neighbouring church, much more so where people provide lifts for many who don’t drive. 

“Helping people to worship at a latest church does in fact mean that they should feel welcomed by clergy and other worshippers, but it surely does represent a chance for community and growth.

“Our parish churches are an enormous and glorious treasury of shared history, celebrations, creativity and hopes. Regardless of religion and beliefs now we have a shared responsibility to our ancestors, our descendants, and to one another to recognise that treasure and to play our part in caring for it and helping as many churches as possible stay open.”

The UK has seen a dramatic decline within the variety of lively churches, with over 3,500 shuttering for good within the last decade. 

North of the border, the Church of Scotland is selling off around 40 per cent of its churches attributable to declining membership and financial pressures. 

The National Churches Trust said that the pace of church closures across the UK was accelerating, and that many church buildings are under threat due to the increasing cost of repairs and maintenance. 

In England, over 900 churches are on the Historic England Heritage At Risk Register, and in Wales around 1 / 4 of historic churches and chapels have closed lately, with an analogous number in danger. 

The National Churches Trust is appealing to the federal government to assist struggling at-risk churches by extending the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme beyond March 2025, when it’s attributable to end. The scheme allows churches to say back VAT on repairs, significantly reducing costs. 

Claire Walker, chief executive of the National Churches Trust, said: “Many church closures happen as the cash can’t be found to perform urgent repairs. Fixing a roof can cost over half one million kilos.

“The backlog of repairs for the Church of England’s churches alone is no less than £1 billion, and the annual need is estimated to be £150 million a yr.

“Some churches are currently helped by the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme, which allows historic churches to say back the VAT on repairs. But this scheme is attributable to expire in March 2025.

“We subsequently urge the brand new Government to increase this scheme, first introduced by Gordon Brown in 2002, within the forthcoming Budget. This will allow those running churches to plan for the long run protected within the knowledge that they’ll give you the chance to say back 20% of their costs.”