AMBITIOUS plans to ‘grow’ 100 more church congregations by 2027 have been launched by the Diocese of Guildford.

The year 2027 marks the centenary of the Diocese and the target of 100 new congregations is set out in a 10-year programme containing 12 goals, ‘Transforming Church, Trans- forming Lives’.

The launch by the Bishop of Guildford, The Rt Rev Andrew Watson, follows a year of consultation, in which the views of more than 1,500 churchgoers across Surrey and Hampshire were gathered.

The consultation revealed that growth in churches was frequently associated with making provision for children and young families, starting new worship services and engaging in social action projects.

Churches also tended to be growing where they were responsive to changes in culture, with so many activities now competing for the traditional Sunday morning ‘church slot’.

The Church of England hopes to recruit 50 per cent more aspiring vicars by 2020 to help meet a national shortage, as well as training more lay leaders in all disciplines. The number of Church School Academies is set to rise rapidly, with outreach into schools and further education establishments a priority.

To help enact the plan, local parishes will be asked to pray together, then to identify priorities which suit their community. They will be supported by central training, mentoring, resources and grant funding through a newly-established growth fund, with plans to top this up with grant applications to the Church Commissioners of the Church of England.

The diocese is keen to ensure it has a presence in the many new housing developments across the area.

The bishop said: “I’m very excited by the idea of transformation, because wherever I go I meet people whose lives have been transformed through their contact with the church and the God whom we worship.

“Hundreds of church-led community initiatives across the region, from food banks to street pastors, from youth clubs to elderly drop-ins, are also transforming whole communities, bringing hope and help to those who need it most.

“I’m particularly excited by the vision to found 100 new worshipping communities over the next ten years. While many people still appreciate a more traditional approach to church-going, our aim with this initiative is to allow people who may have never been to church to find their place in the Christian family.

“Bringing new people into Church means thinking creatively, thinking differently. In today’s society, people are often so busy that the traditional Sunday morning slot doesn’t work for them, but our experience is that the God-shaped gap in people’s lives is as real as ever.

“While we can’t ignore the fact that nationally, church attendance has been gradually declining, what we’ve heard is that when we get the ingredients right, attracting new people is very possible.

“Growth isn’t associated with one particular style of worship, and we see it in many areas, from contemporary services to cathedral worship, with national statistics released this week showing cathedral attendances to be consistently on the rise.

“So we expect these 100 new congregations will come in all shapes and sizes. Whether it be an established congregation sending some of its members to a new area of need, a week-night service in an existing church, a group meeting in a pub or a skate park, this is about the Church meeting people where they are.”

“The message from the parish leaders who will be launching this vision today is that they can’t wait to get started.”