The Church of England has been buoyed by latest figures showing a leap in visits to its church finder website.
More people than ever before are searching for a neighborhood church on the Church of England’s dedicated search page, AChurchNearYou.Com.
Page views on the page rose significantly from 128.1 million in 2023 to 198.6 million in 2024.
The website also recorded growth in shares to social media pages and devices. Over 11,000 church services and events were shared on social media – a large increase of 268 per cent on the previous 12 months.
Similarly, over 18,000 services and events were saved on people’s digital and cell phone calendars – up 200 per cent in the identical period.
The figures have been released at first of considered one of the busiest periods for parish churches as Holy Week gets underway, starting with special Palm Sunday services and leading as much as Easter weekend. Some 20,000 services and events are planned for this week within the Church of England alone.
The Church of England’s Head of Digital, Amaris Cole, said she was “delighted” with the extent of engagement.
“The staggering increase shows the general public are more interested than ever in connecting with considered one of our communities, whether for a service, an event, a family activity or considered one of the amazing projects our churches run,” she said.
“Our churches frequently report newcomers who’ve found them through the positioning, so the rise in page hits is giving our editors confidence in inviting the general public in to considered one of our 16,000 spaces.
“This month alone, churches have added around 20,000 calendar events that the general public are invited to attended as we glance to have fun Easter.
“Because everyone seems to be welcome, we’ve prioritised accessibility by adding tags to assist visitors find the service for them – whether there’s wheelchair access, gluten-free refreshments, British Sign Language translation or dementia friendly. These might be found through the use of the tags when looking for churches in your area.”
The figures have been released just days after recent research by the Bible Society suggested a ‘quiet revival’ is underway within the UK due to increased interest in Christianity amongst young people.
The research, conducted on behalf of the Bible Society by YouGov, found that last 12 months around 12% of adults attended church at the very least once a month, up from just 8% in 2018.
This included over a fifth of 18 to 24 12 months old men, up from just 4% in 2018. Among women of the identical age, figures increased in the identical period from 4% to 12%.
Young people were also more more likely to be considering going to church or learning more in regards to the Bible.
Around a 3rd of 18 to 24 12 months olds said they’d go to church if invited by a friend, while 1 / 4 said they’re considering learning more in regards to the Bible.
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