THE number of people worshipping each week in our churches has grown for a fourth year in a row, statistics have confirmed.

There were 8,000 people worshipping each week in 2024 in CofE churches across south-east Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. That number has increased each year since the Covid pandemic, but remains below the 9,600 figure recorded in 2019. That number dipped to 4,600 in 2020 when churches were largely closed, but has increased each year since.

These figures mirror the national picture, as attendance also grew in the whole Church of England for the fourth year in a row. The number of regular worshippers across the Church of England’s congregations rose to 1.009 million in 2024, a rise of 0.6 per cent, according to the annual Statistics for Mission findings. 

It was the second year in a row in which the Church of England’s 'worshipping community' – the combined number of regular members of local congregations – has stood above a million since the Covid-19 pandemic. All age average attendance on a Sunday also rose 1.5 per cent to 581,000 in 2024, extending rises over recent years.

And average weekly attendance edged upwards by 1.6 cent in a year, and stood at just over 702,000 last year, according to the figures. The increase was driven by a recovery in attendance by adults (over 16), among whom average weekly attendance rose by 1.8 per cent.

The 2024 figures showed that adult baptisms rose to 8,700 in 2024 across the country, compared to 7,800 the previous year. There was also a rise in the number of young people, aged between 11 and 17 years old who were baptised, from 2,100 in 2023 to 2,400 last year. Confirmations also rose by 5.3 per cent in the whole Church of England - from 10,700 to 11,300. This was reflected in our diocese, as the number of confirmations rose from 101 to 143 in 2024.

However, the figures also showed the overall number of baptisms - which includes infant baptisms - fell across the whole Church of England, as the post-Covid lockdown ‘catch up’ slowed. In our diocese, that figure remained static.

While the overall figures show that in-person attendance has not fully reached pre-pandemic levels, the figures suggest it is moving closer to the projected pre-pandemic trend. In some cases, it has risen above the levels that might have been expected had there been no pandemic.

These 'Statistics for Mission' are calculated each year across the whole Church of England. Churches count the number attending services on Sundays and during the week each October. They also count the numbers attending Christmas and Easter services, as well as providing a host of other statistics. The full Statistics for Mission document can be read here.