Press Release: Church of England.
Parish revitalisations, work with children, young people and families and training for mission in rural areas are among a range of programmes to spread the Christian faith backed by the latest round of grants awarded by the Church of England.
The Dioceses of Carlisle, Chelmsford, Rochester, Sheffield, St Edmundsbury and Ipswich and Winchester are to receive awards for programmes to support parishes and serve communities, ranging from funding for new congregations in churches to funding for clergy and lay workers in urban and rural areas.
The awards, made by the Church of England’s Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB) invest in low-income communities and seek to promote diversity in congregations and church leadership.
The Diocese of Chelmsford is to receive £6.45 million for its ‘Believing in Barking’ programme in east London, including support for children and youth workers, mission on estates, and ministry in minority languages, in parishes across the traditions of the Church of England.
The Bishop of Chelmsford, Guli Francis-Dehqani, said: “Believing in Barking reflects our commitment to participative change; enabling and empowering local parishes, deaneries and worshipping communities to discern how they are to be God’s people in their own very different contexts and as part of one diocesan family.”
The Diocese of Sheffield has been awarded £14.3 million over the next three years for plans to build on the successes of its Centenary project with children, young people and families.
These include making Sheffield Cathedral a centre of mission through funding for music ‘missioners’, a digital evangelist and support for a new religious community focused on mission and evangelisation and new congregations.