Manchester Diocese Gets £9.9 Million to Plant Six New Churches as Only 1% of the City Attends Services

Manchester Diocese Receives Nearly 10 Million Pounds to Plant New Churches Across England

The Diocese of Manchester has been awarded £9.9 million from the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB) to fund church growth and renewal over the next four years.

The funding will support the establishment of new worshipping communities, the creation of six resource churches representing various traditions, and new children's and youth worker positions across the diocese.

Bishop David Walker celebrated the announcement, describing the investment as a powerful endorsement of the diocese's shared vision.

This investment is a wonderful affirmation of the vision we share across Manchester Diocese. It gives us the means to strengthen our parishes, nurture young disciples, and grow new Christian communities.

The grant also supports development programmes for lay and ordained leaders and the Antioch Network, which plants smaller churches in deprived areas. The diocese already has six church plants within the network, with plans for these to become resource churches that will seed even more congregations.

Manchester faces significant spiritual challenges. Only 1% of the population attends Church of England services, a figure that drops to 0.7% in the most deprived parishes. Over half of the diocese's churches average fewer than 35 adult worshippers each week.

Since 2017, the diocese's Transformation Programme has restructured deaneries and established 33 mission communities, supported by over £20 million from the Church Commissioners. The Revd Greg Sharples, Vicar of Widnes, was recently named clergy lead for the Antioch Network.

The diocesan synod has also approved a 2026 budget with a projected £1.2 million deficit, down from £2.1 million in 2025, signalling a gradual improvement in financial health alongside these bold new investments in church planting.

Church of England Invests Millions in Manchester Diocese to Build New Congregations

The diocese has emphasised that a commitment to parish renewal anchors their strategy, with specialist, practical help aimed at ensuring the missional and financial sustainability of parishes across Greater Manchester.

The Crusader's Opinion

This is what it looks like when the Church stops retreating and starts advancing. While secular culture writes off Christianity as irrelevant, Manchester is putting nearly ten million pounds behind the belief that Christ's message still transforms communities. Only 1% of the population in one of England's great cities attends an Anglican service. That is not just a statistic. That is a spiritual emergency. And the fact that it drops even lower in the poorest neighbourhoods tells you exactly where the Church needs to be and where it has been absent for too long. Plant churches. Train leaders. Go where the darkness is thickest. This is the Great Commission in action, and every diocese in England should be taking notes.

Take Action

• Pray specifically for Bishop David Walker and the Antioch Network as they plant six new resource churches across Manchester's most underserved communities.
• Support the Diocese of Manchester's church planting efforts directly at manchester.anglican.org.
• Contact your own diocese or church leadership and ask what church planting initiatives exist in your area. If there are none, start the conversation.
• Donate to www.TheShepherdsShield.org to support Christians on the frontlines of faith across the world.
• Share this story with your congregation and small group. Use it as a springboard to discuss what bold investment in local mission could look like in your own community.