Manchester Diocese has a strong commitment to growth, in numbers and depth of faith. There are two key words at the heart of our Growing strategy: Fresh and Refresh. Fresh means new initiatives, intentionally designed to produce church growth. Refresh is about helping our inherited churches grow. FreshResourcing/Hub ChurchesA Resourcing Church, or Hub Church, is aimed primarily at young adults. It has mission at its heart, and resources other churches in its area. Until 2020 we had just one Resourcing/Hub Church in Manchester: St Philip’s, Salford. In 2020, three more were established:
Church PlantingWe are keen to encourage the planting of new churches, including plants outside traditional church buildings. Our main initiatives are:
REFRESHStepping Stones for GrowthThis is our main church growth toolkit for leaders of all churches in the diocese, ordained and lay. The main main Stepping Stones events are online in November 2020, and there will be follow-on events during 2021. Its main emphasis is on offering ‘stepping stones’ to help people without a faith take the next step on their journey. Mission Action PlanningWe actively encourage every parish and deanery to complete its own Mission Action Plan. This includes plans for outreach and growth. Promoting ResourcesWe encourage local churches to use the best resources in church growth and faith sharing. These include Leading Your Church into Growth training, and the Faith Pictures course on personal faith sharing (written by Manchester’s Head of Church Growth, Mike Starkey). See also Made Up North, a collection of insights of business people in Manchester gathered from business breakfasts organised by Ministry2Business. |