Major investment in local churches and parish clergy as £1.6bn three-year national spending plans unveiled

• Church Commissioners’ funding towards work of the church set to leap by 36 per cent in the three-year period 2026-28, amounting to the biggest distribution in Church’s history.
• Indicative distributions of £4.6 billion over nine years from 2026 to 2034.
• Typical stipend set to rise 10.7 per cent next year under new proposals as clergy well-being put at centre of spending plans. Boost in support for churches in lowest income communities.

The Church of England today unveils plans to invest more than £1.6 billion towards sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and serving local communities over the next three years – a 36 per cent rise on the national funding made available in 2022 for the current three-year period.

The distributions from the Church Commissioners, which manages the Church’s national endowment fund, will support a major package of measures for clergy well-being and a focus on supporting parishes in the lowest income communities in the country, as well as other key priorities including safeguarding and redress.

The majority of the work of the Church of England across the country is paid-for through the generosity and sacrificial giving of those in local congregations – a critical partnership with so many faithful people, which is the bedrock of the Church’s finances and for which we are so thankful.

On top of that, the Commissioners’ funding for the work of the Church, distributed through the Archbishops’ Council, is set to increase by £430 million between 2026 and 2028 above the previous three-year period, or triennium - which was itself up 30 per cent on the period before

Overall, the Church Commissioners and Archbishops’ Council have set indicative distributions of £4.6 billion in support of the work of the Church over nine years to support the Church’s Vision and Strategy to enable the flourishing of our parishes and worshipping communities across the whole country and help the church to become younger and more diverse, and safer.

Clergy well-being

The Archbishops’ Council has today set a 10.7 per cent rise in clergy stipends – both the National Minimum Stipend and National Stipends Benchmark – to come into effect in April next year.

Dioceses will be invited to adopt the National Stipends Benchmark as a national standard stipend for incumbent status clergy.

This follows proposals announced three weeks ago to improve pension benefits by restoring the two-thirds target level abolished in 2011, in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, and increase pensions which have come into payment since then. Those proposals will be considered by the General Synod next month.

The funding proposals announced today also include additional financial support of over £95 million for clergy retirement housing as well as investment in new initiatives to improve choices for clergy when they retire (Read more).

And at the other end of the career span – the plans include enhanced support towards living costs for those training for ordination.

The clergy well-being proposals are made possible by a wider programme of financial simplification which will include abolishing the system of diocesan ‘apportionment’ to the national Church.

Through this change, dioceses will receive financial relief from current costs, and many will also receive additional funding to support the Church’s work in their lowest income communities, in order to help fund the increase.

Investing in local churches

Following four years of growth in church attendance, there will be continued investment in helping revitalise local churches and outreach.

Overall Strategic Mission & Ministry Investment is set to rise by almost nine per cent to £416.4 million in the coming triennium.

Within that, the funding set aside for churches in the lowest income communities is set to jump from £91 million in the last three years to £133.5 million.

There will also be £236 million to invest in the local church through supporting dioceses in their longer-term strategies in the coming triennium.

Separately, in recognition of the major financial pressures they have faced since the pandemic, £200 million additional time-limited support is being set aside for dioceses over the next nine years, of which £100 million will be in the next three years.

It is hoped that this will provide much needed breathing space as dioceses work together in partnership with their parishes and worshipping communities to grow and sustain flourishing ministry across the country.

Meanwhile there will be to £48.1 million support for cathedrals, including further investment in the Cathedral Sustainability Fund in recognition of the financial challenges cathedrals face.

Safeguarding and Redress

Central to the spending plans is a major focus on safeguarding. £30 million has been allocated towards the cost of national safeguarding work, including the work on Safeguarding Structures, focussed on moving towards greater independence in safeguarding arrangements.

The spending plans also reaffirm the previously announced allocation of £150 million towards the costs of the new National Redress scheme.

Protecting God’s creation

The spending plans confirm earlier proposals to invest £190 million over several triennia to support General Synod’s ambition to reach Net Zero Carbon. The latest proposals would extend the period when funding is available up to 2034 to prevent a ‘cliff-edge’ after the 2030 target date set by Synod, enabling work to limit carbon emissions to continue to receive support during that period.

The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, said: “The Church of England exists to live out the good news of Jesus Christ in every community in England.

“We are the church of and for the people of England and our work is funded through a living partnership between the Church Commissioners and the thousands of individuals and communities who give so generously and sacrificially.

“So I would like to thank all of those who support the mission and ministry of the Church in this way. And we are also fortunate that the wise stewardship of the Church Commissioners means we are able to distribute £430 million more over the next three years than was made available three years ago.

“What we do with that money matters. Parishes and clergy are at the heart of everything we do in the Church. We want to recognise that. It is also vital that we prioritise support for churches serving communities in the greatest need. In this way we can continue to fulfil our vocation of being the church for everyone.”

The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, who chaired the Triennium Funding Working Group – the body which developed the latest spending plans - said: “We have listened carefully to people from across the Church to understand their needs and priorities for the coming years and the work that God is calling us to do and we thank all who have engaged in these discussions.

“One thing which has come through very clearly is the importance of the well-being of our clergy, who are at the forefront of that work.

“So I hope these carefully costed plans will provide a step-change in support to clergy right the way through from those following a call to ordination to those who have retired.

“It is vital also that we learn the lessons of our recent past and do everything we can to be a safer church for everyone.

“While no amount of money can ever erase the harm done by perpetrators of abuse, these spending plans will support the vital work of safeguarding in the Church and underpin the new National Redress scheme.”

Alan Smith, the First Church Estates Commissioner, said: “With this triennium funding package, the Church Commissioners is fulfilling its core purpose – to help fund the mission of the Church of England in England and to ensure its flourishing, taking account of intergenerational equity.

“This distribution of £1.6 billion represents the highest distribution in the Church’s history – and we celebrate all those who have made it possible across the entire community of the Church, in particular the investments team, clergy and parishes.

“In stewarding these resources, we must be humble and vigilant, as the times ahead promise both great opportunities and challenges.”