A £400,000 grant to extend children’s participation in church choirs was announced by the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB) on Sunday.
The “Choir Project” — a partnership with the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) — goals to ascertain or renew greater than 200 church choirs that include children and young people, while “engaging them actively with Christianity”. The aim is to assist churches “rediscover music as a pathway to mission and discipleship”.
A press release from Church House said that the variety of cathedral choirs in England had reached a record high of 207 in 2024, but that 57 per cent of local church choirs currently had no children participating. It referred to research which suggested that “young individuals are more prone to remain energetic in faith communities after they are given meaningful roles, intergenerational relationships and opportunities for leadership”.
Hugh Morris, the director of the RSCM, said: “For generations, church choirs have been probably the most natural and joyful ways for young people to come across faith, study worship, and grow in confidence and belonging.
“As we glance to our second century of supporting church music and musicians, RSCM sees this investment in young people as an important step to making sure a brilliant way forward for music ministry, and fostering energetic discipleship across all backgrounds and socio-economic environments, for the wealthy heritage we inherit today.”
The Bishop of Chelmsford, Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, creator of Listening to the Music of the Soul (Books, 24 October 2024) said: “The English choral tradition is exclusive and a part of our wealthy cultural and spiritual heritage. The fantastic thing about church singing speaks on to people of all generations and from all walks of life. I’m delighted to see this investment that may go to church choirs across the country.”
The investment follows earlier investments by the Archbishops’ Council in music ministry. Last yr, plans to ascertain “music missioners” at Sheffield Cathedral were
among the many components of a bid from Sheffield diocese that secured a £14.3-million SMMIB grant (News, 2 May 2025). A £2.6-million Strategic Development Fund (SDF) grant awarded in 2018 was partly used to create a resource church at Rotherham Minster, helping to fund its Choral Outreach initiative working with
primary schools (News, 25 January 2019).
In 2022, Blackburn diocese was awarded £249,530 in innovation funding to support the establishment of as much as 24 “choir churches” (News, 22 July 2022). To date, nine choirs have been began in schools. At Hull Minster, funding has helped to re-establish a chorister division, welcoming 45 young people and their families to the choir and church, leading 4 parish churches in the world to re-establish a choral tradition.
In 2019, the Choir Church initiative was launched in Milton, Portsmouth, devised by Portsmouth Cathedral and its Organist and Master of Choristers, Dr David Price, in collaboration with the Priest-in-Charge of St James’s, Milton, Canon Paul Armstead (News, 28 June 2019). The diocese, working with the Cathedral, goals to “found recent congregations and recent disciples through the facility of music and singing at parishes across the region”.
The Choir Church project began in east London in 2016 (Features, 17 November 2017). It works with the Gregory Centre for Church Multiplication, and was initially given impetus by the Bishop of Islington, Dr Ric Thorpe. The first Choir Church was planted by St George-in-the-East, London, in 2016.
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