During 2017, the national Digital Communications team at Church House in London produced a report on how to get the most from a new A Church Near You website. They spoke to 1,800 people across the country to gather insights and thoughts on how to make the service much better for a site that receives over 13 million page views each year.
As a result of this research, a new site was launched in November. Changes include:
• Churches are now able to add extra information to events and services, such as a location other than the church, times, accessibility and contact details.
• Space to include information about the facilities the church has, from a post office to foodbank or Alpha.
• The ability for churches to see the number of page views their profile gets each week, month and year.
• Users don’t just need to search for their nearest church or Church of England school, but can filter the search to show results that include the features and facilities they’re looking for, such as accessibility, car parking or service type.
In phase two, churches will be able to turn their simple page into a full church website, giving parishes the chance the make the most of this well-used website.
Please pray for all those who work to keep our churches online presence relevant, up to date and looking good, demonstrating a welcoming presence for those who are looking for a church or to find out more about faith.
Martley and Worcester West Deanery – Rural Dean: David Sherwin; Lay Chair: John Chidlow
