Growing churches

In 2020, the congregation of Christ Church Freemantle was dwindling. Based in one of Southampton’s most deprived areas, the church had been without a vicar for five years, and the Sunday School had shrunk to two children. Visit today, and you’ll meet a transformed community; a diverse, vibrant congregation now calling the church home, with a Sunday School of 25 children and 13 confirmations amongst new members in the last year.

A group of predominantly Anglo-Catholic churches in London’s Kensington deanery started CCX’s Grow Course together in 2024, seeking to grow in breadth, depth and impact. Fr James Heard, Vicar of the United Benefice Holland Park and Mother Emma Dinwiddy Smith, Vicar of St Mary Abbots, reflect on their experiences, the benefits of joining alongside others of a similar tradition, and how they are seeing the fruit of this journey in their own contexts.

A new season for St Kat’s, West London, heralded fresh energy, vision and a focus on the church’s priorities. Doing the Grow Course helped the team to make a shift that has allowed the church to flourish, with new leaders being raised up and a new worshipping community - Families Church - planted.

A church in the City of London is reaching out to some of the City’s unseen workers. Having identified a need for English classes, St Katharine Cree is seeing the growth of a whole new Spanish-speaking worshipping community.

Beatrice Smith and Joe Brady both felt a call to plant a new church in Greater Manchester - but the fruit of that call, the planting of Restoration Church, took the better part of a decade to emerge.

A new area of ministry has opened up for St Peter's church in Oadby, Leicester, at a pub opposite the church. Pub-goers are taking up the opportunity to hear and discuss the gospel in this familiar space at the heart of the Oadby community.

Being intentional about growth, discipleship and developing a culture where everyone is involved is bearing fruit at Holy Trinity Hounslow, a diverse Christian community worshipping God in West London.

St Martin’s Church NW5 describes itself as ‘a community of faith, hope and love in Gospel Oak’ in North London. The Vicar, Mother Carol Barrett Ford, spoke to CCX about her own role and how the Grow Course played a part in encouraging St Martin’s to reflect on depth of discipleship as well as to adapt and innovate post-Covid.

Simon Lang has been the pastor of Neighbourhood Church, Beckenham, since it began in his own home 15 years ago. He shares his experiences of how the Grow Course helped their community overcome a plateau in their journey, developing new leaders and finding new spaces to thrive.

Tim Rose is the Rector of St Mary Magdalene church, Littleton. He shares his journey of growth, from exploring a new men's outreach to growing a team of volunteers.

Converting a former nightclub into a city centre resource church is no easy feat. Yet Fountains Church Bradford has managed this, now worshipping in its new building and launching Wrestling Church this April. We spoke to the Revd Linda Maslen to hear more.

Painted on a wall in Christ Church, Gosport is the phrase, ‘Good things for Gosport’. Revd Ray Driscoll shares the journey of launching a new family service, reaching out to the community through lockdown, supporting local primary schools and starting a ‘Love Gosport’ campaign, all centred on the vision that God has good things for Gosport.