Church of England Pours 100 Million Pounds Into Mission: 46,000 New Members Reported

Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board Reports Real Growth Across Dioceses as Hove Church Goes From 5 Children to 140

The Church of England has just published its 2025 mission funding report, and the results are substantial. £98 million distributed to dioceses, £5.9 million to mission partners, 1,500 new worshipping communities launched, and 46,000 new people reported joining the Church.

The funding flows through the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB), chaired by Carl Hughes.

Church of England Strategic Mission Funding Yields Real Numerical Growth

The case studies are striking. All Saints Hove in the Diocese of Chichester grew from 5 children at Sunday worship to 140 children, parents, and carers, adding 17 baptisms last year, the highest number in over a decade. The church now operates a playgroup and community café.

St Luke's Blackburn grew from a small ageing congregation to over 100 weekly worshippers.

The SMMIB also reports 7,600 new leaders created to date, with 6,000 more expected through current programmes including 100 curates. "We are delighted to share our annual review for 2025, and to see that strategic investment in local ministry is bearing fruit," Hughes said.

The Crusader's Opinion

The Church of England has spent the last decade as a punchline for theological drift, and there is plenty to lament. But the SMMIB numbers are real growth. 46,000 people walked into Anglican churches and stayed. Five children became 140 in Hove. A dying church in Blackburn became a hundred strong. Strategic investment in mission works when the mission is preached. The CofE bishops who cling to the Gospel are still planting living churches. Pray for them. Support them. Visit them. The English Church is not finished.

Take Action

• Read: The full Church of England SMMIB report
• Visit: A growing CofE parish near you and encourage their leaders
• Donate: Local Church of England mission projects in your diocese
• Pray: For the 7,600 new leaders being trained for the next generation
• Share: The Hove and Blackburn case studies and tell sceptics the Church is still planting