Church attendance grows for fifth year in a row

Overall, there were an estimated 1.023 million regular worshippers across Church of England congregations last year, up 1.4 per cent on 2024, according to preliminary returns for the annual Statistics for Mission report.

It is the fifth year in a row in which attendance both on Sundays and across the week have risen – the first time this has been seen since current records have been kept.

Just under two million people (1.96 million) joined services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day last year - up 5.5 per cent - in addition to 4.8 million attendances over advent, a 2.0 per cent rise. Easter attendance was up 7.8 per cent to just over one million (1.03 million).

Over a typical week an estimated 707,000 people attended Church of England services, up 0.7 per cent on the previous year, and 15.5 per cent higher than 2021 when attendance rebounded after Covid.

Meanwhile average attendance at Sunday services stood at 590,000 – up 1.6 per cent on the 2024 figure. Despite this recent growth, attendance and participation remain below pre-pandemic levels.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, said: "It is so encouraging to see the ways that God is at work in our Church. "With more people coming to services on Sundays and throughout the week, as well as during Advent, Christmas and Easter, it shows a yearning for meaning and connection in our often busy and fractured world. "I give thanks for the clergy, lay people and volunteers who each week make people feel welcome in every parish across our country."

Debbie Clinton, the Church of England's Director for Vision and Strategy, said: “Each of these numbers represents an individual journey of faith in Christ, and we celebrate another year that shows more and more people gathering to worship in local churches, including many for the first time. “From our rural villages to our post-industrial towns, in parishes across the country, churches are reaching out to their communities and sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Our 2025 statistics are a testament to their hospitality and faithfulness. “We praise God for all that He doing is in His Church.”

Notes to Editors

• The Church of England’s ‘worshipping community’ is the combined number of regular members of local congregations.

• These figures are preliminary and may change as more information is received from churches and as further data checks are carried out.

• These figures are based on information from around 80 per cent of Church of England churches.

• The full 2025 Statistics for Mission report will be published on the autumn.

Read previous reports here.