Church membership in London is growing and the Diocese is bucking many of the trends of maintenance or decline in other parts of the Church of England. The reasons for this are complex and were examined in 2003 in a research document, 'A Capital Idea', by Bob Jackson. This is published on the Diocesan Website: A Capital Idea.
Jackson says, "The culture is to appoint mission-focussed, innovative and energetic clergy, able to work collaboratively in a team with other church members and to release them into ministry."
Mission Action Plans are a core part of the way this mission-focussed culture is implemented. To quote A Capital Idea, "There is general agreement that the culture began to be transformed under Bishop David Hope in the mid 1990s, beginning with the programme 'Agenda for Action' in 1993. Under 'Agenda for Action', churches were asked to frame priorities for their mission-action, and so began to frame Mission Action Plans. This process forced many parishes to think and try new things, to become more daring. Others began to believe for the first time that things could actually improve rather than continue sliding downhill. This momentum has been continued under Bishop Richard. During 1998-9, under the programme 'London Bridges', churches were asked to look at their parishes in a mission-orientated way under three headings, 'recruiting new believers – renewing the household of faith – rebuilding a broken world'". London Challenge 2012 currently sets out strategic targets and programmes for the growth of the church in the Diocese of London.
Today the majority of churches in the Diocese have Mission Action Plans, with an expectation that every parish will move in this direction. Mission Action Plans are used by churches to focus on the priorities that they have set for themselves. They will also be used in the assessment of every church's health and viability and used as a tool in clergy development programmes.
| 1. Introduction to Mission Action Planning |
|
|
| 2. SWOT Analysis Chart |
|
|
| 3. The Five Marks of Mission |
|
|
| 4. Action Planning Chart |
|
|
| 5. Books and Websites |
|
|
| 6. Edmonton Area Guidelines for Mission Action Planning |
|
|
| 7. Seven Marks of a Healthy Church |
|
|
| 8. SMART Goals |
|
|
| 9. Community Audit |
|
|
| St John, Notting Hill |
|
|
| St John, Stanmore (summary) |
|
|
| St John the Evangelist |
|
|
| St Mary, West Twyford |
|
|
