Church is where the heart is 30 January 2009
Churchgoing is not in decline, according to figures released by Tearfund today (30 January 2009) which show that one in four adults in the UK attend church at least once a year.
According to research carried out by Tearfund, 12.8 million adults in the UK attend church at least once a year, of whom 7.3 million attend at least once a month.
Christian relief and development agency Tearfund regularly interview 7,000 members of the public about their churchgoing habits, as part of wider research about perceptions of society and world issues, and have identified an upward trend in church attendance.
‘We have noticed that in the last year, there has been a significant increase in monthly attendance, bringing the figure for autumn 2008 to 15 per cent after a number of years of reported decline,’ says Matthew Frost, Chief Executive of Tearfund. ‘Similarly, the proportion of UK adults attending church at least once a year has increased from 21 per cent in 2007 to 26 per cent in 2008, which is an increase from around one in five adults to around one in four.
‘Our understanding is that more people are attending now than before, even if that is only a couple of times a year rather than every week. This might mean going to church at one of the high points in their family’s year, such as Christmas or Easter, or attending Sunday services or midweek events.
‘This is of course immensely encouraging, because it shows that people are associating church and a belief in God with hope and joy, and a positive way to spend their time.’
The research questions were framed deliberately to exclude attendance for weddings, baptisms, funerals and other invitation-only events so as to concentrate on voluntary attendance.
Groups showing a larger increase in attendance than the average between September 2007 and September 2008 included 25-34 year olds (up 7% from 15% to 22%), 65-74 year olds (up 6% from 27% to 33%), and over 75 year olds (up 10% from 29% to 39%). Geographically, the highest increases were found in Wales (up 12% from 12% to 24%), South East England (up 8% from 19% to 27%), Scotland (up 8% from 19% to 27%) and Northwest England (up 7% from 21% to 28%).
Methodology: 7,000 adults are interviewed every six months (a different sample of 7,000 people each time), creating a representative sample of the UK population and forming the largest research sample of its kind. No other research into church attendance in the UK encompasses so many research subjects and asks for self-proclaimed attendance (compared to taking a register in church on a Sunday morning). Therefore, this research more fully captures people’s own perceptions of their attendance and takes into account the changing face of church: that many people now attend events and activities at times other than on a Sunday morning.
Overall headlines and trends: One in four UK adults (26% or 12.8 million) go to church at least once a year. The Tearfund data reveal that 15% of UK adults (7.3m) attend church at least once a month at 10% at least once a week (4.9m).
Contrary to reports that church attendance is waning, this tracking research (which interviews 7,000 adults every six months) shows that church attendance in Sep 08 was actually slightly higher than a year previously in Sep 07.
Significant increases in church attendance among UK adults (aged 16+) from September 2007 to September 2008:
at least annually +5% 21% to 26%
at least monthly +2% 13% to 15%
at least weekly +1% 9% to 10%
The broader trend over three years since the start of the tracking, shows that churchgoing is holding up well:
at least annually: Sep 08 recovery from low point of 21% in Feb 07 but still below Feb 05 level of 29%
at least monthly: Sep 08 and Feb 05 are equivalent, at 15%
at least weekly: Sep 08 and Feb 05 are equivalent, at 10%
The following segments have annual churchgoing levels consistently above average
(%s are Sep 08 scores vs. 26% among all UK adults):
Women (30%); 65-74s (33%); over 75s (39%); AB social class (34%); owner occupiers without a mortgage (32%); Greater London (30%); Northern Ireland (54%).
The following segments have annual churchgoing levels consistently below average
(%s are Sep 08 scores vs. 26% among all UK adults):
Men (21%); 16-24s (16%) ; 25-34s (22%); C2 social class (18%); DE social class (24%); single people (19%); council tenants (19%); NE region (18%); Yorkshire & Humberside (17%); Wales (24%).
By denomination, the ‘established’ churches have shown a much higher increase in monthly attendance than the smaller denominations:
Church of England +6%
Church of Scotland +6%
Others +0%
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We are very pleased to report that the Rev Carol Smith, Vicar of Moulsham St Luke, has been appointed to the post of Assistant Rural Dean. |