Service by Service Attendance - Diocese of Liverpool

As ever, thank you to all parish officers who diligently collect their church’s attendance information and send it into St James’ House. Better data means better decisions.

Why service by service attendance returns?

Which churches are growing in numbers? Which churches are holding their own in difficult circumstances? Which churches would value some help? Which churches have a story to share? These questions and others can only be answered if we have reliable attendance information.

The Statistics for Mission return gives a helpful snapshot of our October attendance. But as our congregations and our communities change both our churches and our diocese benefit from richer data. So we also ask churches to record and report the numbers of adults and children attending worship at:

All our Sunday church services, both regular and occasional.
All our midweek services, including school services.
All Fresh Expressions of church in our parish, whether Sunday or midweek, weekly, monthly or termly – including regular services in nursing homes.

When do we complete our returns?

By far the easiest and quickest way to make these returns is by using the Service Register app. It’s simple and flexible to use so we ask that data should be updated at least monthly.

Excel and paper service by service attendance returns must be submitted at the end of each quarter year. Returns should be made for the preceding quarter by the end of: April, July, October and January

Reminders to return service by service attendance data are posted in the weekly diocesan bulletin.

How do we complete our returns?

The most efficient way to record and return your service by service attendance returns is by using the Church of England’s bespoke Service Register app.

Check out the Service Register App page to find out how this simple and free app can make things much easier. Several users can access each church and you can literally record and return data for each service in ‘real time’ or you can record and return your data at your convenience anytime during the week. Job done.

If a church can’t use the Service Register app please see the Downloads at the bottom of this page. Forms are available for electronic completion in Excel format and to print for paper returns (PDF).

Counting the congregation

Following discussion and decisions at our Liverpool diocesan synod the following principles should be applied to all church attendance counts.

All congregations and worshipping communities should be counted and recorded: Sunday and midweek, schools and nursing homes, Eucharistic or non-Eucharistic. It is important that all fresh expressions of church, sometimes called emerging congregations (e.g. Messy Church) are also included.

For attendance counting purposes, each week starts with a Sunday. For each service recorded, the app and recording sheets ask for an estimation of the number of people who attended that service and also attended one in the same church earlier within the same week.

So, the first service held on any Sunday would not have any repeats attendees. However, the second service on the same Sunday, or a service held later that week could have repeat attendees.

An illustration

A church has an 8.00am and 10.00am Sunday service and an 11.00am Thursday Eucharist. The Vicar and a Churchwarden attend both Sunday services. Of the eleven lay people at the 11.00am Thursday Eucharist three had been at the Sunday 10.00am at the start of the week.

The number of repeat attendees for the 8am service is zero; there had been no previous service that week. The repeat attendees at the 10.00am is two (Vicar and Warden). Repeat attendees at the 11.00 on Thursday is four: the vicar plus the three church members present on Sunday of that week, at 10.00am.

Of course, there can’t be precise rules for counting attendance. Patterns of church attendance are fluid, people can attend more than once and not every congregation meets weekly. Counting is a matter of trust and mutuality.

Downloads: attendance forms 2025/2026

For 2026 onwards, we have changed the paper and Excel record sheets to reflect the Service Register app, as the app remains the preferred method for data submission. There is now, therefore, a single record sheet provided for recording both Sunday and Midweek services.

Separate record sheets should be used for each church building and each fresh expression of church.

Attendance Record Sheets should be submitted at least quarterly. As soon as you complete a full sheet please send it in immediately. Don’t wait for the end of the calendar quarter. Send them in as soon as the sheet is complete.

However, if you get to the end of the quarter and you have not completed a full sheet, please still send in what you have completed so that your full quarter information information is available.