A pair of Anglican professors have urged the Church of England to undergo a radical restructure in order to stave off financial disaster and to revitalises parish churches.
Canon Robin Gill and Professor John Craven set forth their “ruthless” plans in Wasted Money in a Diminishing Church, a report published by the Centre for Anglican History and Theology at the Universities of Kent and Christ Church Canterbury.
Gill is Emeritus Professor of Applied Theology at the University of Kent, while Craven is a former professor of economics.
The report argues that far too much money is spent at the diocesan level, often at the expense of the regular parish. It is estimated that diocesan staff numbers have almost doubled from 1,300 in 2005 to 2,300 in 2025. Just under 10 per cent of the current roles at the diocesan level are related to safeguarding.
It is not only staff numbers that have increased. The number of dioceses has nearly doubled from 22 in 1800, to 40 today. Meanwhile, the number of bishops is quadruple what it was in the days of Victorian Britain.
The report argues that such growth - which has not been accompanied by a corresponding growth in churchgoing - represents not just a waste of Church money, but contributes to a cycle of decline that hurts and demoralises those at the parish level.
The authors argue, “We want to break this silence because we are convinced that the Church of England is heading for financial disaster.”
They continue, “More and more of its funds are being spent on administration in every diocese while churchgoing continues to decline, and less and less is spent on supporting parish clergy.
"As clergy are spread ever more thinly in urban and rural areas, services are less frequent, congregations are getting smaller, and less money can be raised in church collections from people who wonder what they are getting for their money.”
As well as questioning the allocation of funds, the report also took aim at controversial projects like the Church’s pledge to reach net zero, which was described as “unrealistic, extravagant, unsustainable, and deeply depressing” for many churchgoers.
The report argues that in order to turn things around, the Church should reduce the number of dioceses and bishops to 30, cut staff at the diocesan level, and give deans responsibility for budgets and decisions on the deployment of clergy.
While acknowledging that many deaneries may need additional support if given these responsibilities, Professor Gill argued that the change is necessary.
“Those who pay for the whole or a part of the cost of their administrators will know exactly what they are getting for their contribution. There is no objection in my mind to supporting necessary administration, but only if those who pay for it also control it," he said.
