The Diocese of Lichfield has reported increased attendances of almost 25 per cent following Back to Church Sunday.
Around 330 Church of England churches across Staffordshire, the northern half of Shropshire and the Black Country took part in what has been described as the largest co-ordinated world-wide mission event on September 26.
Returns from parishes are still being collated, but so far the figures for Lichfield Diocese suggest that around 5,000 people came back to church in the diocese – alongside 53,000 extra people in the Church of England nationally, and 80,000 across all the participating Christian churches in the UK.
The Church of England’s Head of Research and Statistics, the Revd Lynda Barley, said:
“We know from local research that new attenders and the churches enjoy the Back to Church experience of church. Not only has the number of participating churches increased between 2008 and 2009 so that approximately 20 per cent of Church of England churches are now taking part, but the average number of extra people per church has grown, with participating churches each having welcomed an average of 19 extra people compared to 14 last year.”
In the Diocese of Lichfield, where 330 parishes (78 per cent) took part, an average of 15 extra people attended on Back to Church Sunday. The initiative involves a personal invitation from church goers to friends and neighbours. It is supported by an advertising campaign which saw radio adverts featuring the Bishop of Lichfield issuing a personal invitation to listeners to come back to church.
The Rt Revd Jonathan Gledhill, Bishop of Lichfield, added:
“Back to Church isn’t rocket science. It is, however, a way of putting a booster behind the welcome we offer people, and turning mission into less of a specialism. It turns evangelism into a simple invitation that any churchgoer can ask their friend or neighbour – ‘Will you come to church with me on Sunday?’
“What’s really encouraging is the way that Back to Church is becoming a core part of the Church’s DNA. Now a regular event for many churches, the buzz is catching, across churches of all traditions, and I expect to see even more churches getting involved in 2010.”
Back to Church Sunday began in Manchester in 2004, spread to Wakefield Diocese in 2005, nine dioceses in 2006, 20 in 2007, and 38 in 2008, when an estimated 37,000 people came back across the UK .
Research by the Diocese of Lichfield after Back to Church Sunday in 2007 showed that, six months after the event, between 12 and 15 per cent of ‘returners’ had become regular members.