Church mission targets Telford, Ludlow and Bridgnorth
Church 'missioners' will be sent to Shropshire neighbourhoods to persuade people to give God a try.
Telford, Bridgnorth and Ludlow have all been identified as areas that will be targeted.
The initiative will be funded by £525,000 given by the Church of England to the Diocese of Hereford.
It is part of a drive to promote 'spiritual and numerical growth' within the church.
The award from the Church Commissioners will pay for six new 'intergenerational missioners'.
They will work in the diocese’s poorest communities and three market towns over five years.
It is anticipated that the new missioners will be able to reach 1,800 people who do not go to church and that new worshipping communities will be developed, as well as ensuring church congregations are more reflective of the areas they serve.
Each intergenerational missioner will work alongside clergy and existing parish staff, but concentrate on people who have never been to church and those aged under 35.
The intergenerational missioners will be based in Bridgnorth, Madeley, Sutton Hill, Woodside and Ludlow as well as south of the county in Bromyard, South Wye and Ross on Wye.
The Bishop of Hereford, the Right Reverend Richard Frith, said:“I am thrilled that our bid for funding has been successful.
“The grant will be invaluable in enabling us to employ six new missioners to work with people who don’t have a connection with church, focusing particularly on young people.
“It is also an encouraging affirmation of our praying, planning and working for spiritual and numerical growth.”
The diocese says a key responsibility of the new missioners will be to develop the faith of newcomers alongside that of regular churchgoers who want to deepen their Christian commitment.
The funding from the Church Commissioners, for which the diocese completed a bidding process, is specifically ring fenced for the intergenerational missioners and cannot be spent elsewhere.
The overall cost of the project is £1.05m. The Strategic Development Funding of £525,000 was awarded in June 2017.
The rest if the funding is coming from the six parishes where the intergenerational missioners will be based and the diocese is putting up the remaining £52,500, which has been made possible by refocusing resources and stopping other non-priority work.
