The Church of England has commissioned the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex to undertake research on the causes of church growth and decline.
Led by Professor David Voas, the ISER study will compare thousands of churches across the country in an effort to identify where, why and how some congregations are especially successful. The results will help the Church of England to shape its plans for the future.
There are two strands to the work being done by Voas and his team. In the first, records on membership and attendance compiled by the Church of England over the past decade will be carefully analyzed for clues about what factors lead to growth. In the second, thousands of parish churches will be surveyed to provide more detailed data. The findings are expected to emerge during 2013. Additional work on related topics is being done by groups based at the University of Durham and Ripon College Cuddesdon.
Professor Voas commented:
“ISER has done great work across a range of social policy issues over the past decade – this commission confirms that we’re on the side of the angels!”
Kevin Norris from the Church of England said:
“The Church of England are excited that the internationally excellent Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex are to play a highly significant part in delivering the church growth research programme. The Institute’s extensive experience of conducting and analysing the results of major national surveys and significant contribution to informing social policy will bring a great deal of rigour and fresh thinking to this study of church growth.”