Reporting on Trends from the First Quarter of 2021
In 2020, The Unstuck Group refreshed the “Vital Signs” assessment tool to reflect changing ministry paradigms that churches have embraced since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Churches that engage the Unstuck consulting process and subscribers to the Unstuck Learning Hub get free access to the assessment tool.
Over the last 12 months, 171 churches completed the assessment to help us get a picture of the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on ministries. The average pre-pandemic attendance of churches that participated was 803 people. That included churches ranging in size from under 100 to over 10,000 people.
The churches that participated on average started their ministry in 1954. The oldest church that participated dates back to the early 1700s! Most of the churches are connected to a denomination, but about a quarter of the churches that participated indicated they were non-denominational churches.
Surprising Stats on Church Health and Growth
Each quarter when we analyze the data, a few things jump out at me. These were a few I found compelling this time around:
- The average in-person attendance over the previous 12 months of churches dropped by more than 28%.
- There was a 35% decline in the number of new people that churches started tracking in their database over the last year compared to the year before.
- Volunteer engagement has started to recover. In this reporting period, 43% of all adults and students served at least monthly on a volunteer team. The number of volunteers increased 11% from the previous year.
- Staffing levels remain high compared to attendance declines. The average church employs one full-time equivalent staff person for every 47 people in attendance. That includes all ministry and support staff. We know from previous research that growing churches have 35% fewer staff positions than declining churches.
- Giving has increased during the pandemic. Churches reported on average that their total general fund giving was up 1.7% from the previous year. At the same time, the total number of giving units declined by 6% year-over-year. That means fewer people were more generous through the last year.
Stay up-to-date on the trends in church health and growth by getting a copy of the full report today.
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