A GREAT Houghton church is starting to see some promising signs of growth within its congregation after implementing new weekly initiatives to boost numbers.

The Church of St Michael and All Angels originally had in place a congregation of around ten people attending one church communion service at 9am every other week and a knit and natter group on a Tuesday.

The Curate for St Michael’s, Rev Christine Moorey, was keen to show to people that the church is still very much an open presence in the area and helped to put on a set of activities that people could access if they had never been to church before.

‘Mindful Monday’ sessions started around May last year, including candlelit music to help provide a peaceful space for any passers-by.

This event led to ‘Tea and Cake Tuesday’, which took place weekly during school holidays.

This provided tea and cake inside the church and outside in the garden, helping to fulfil a public need due to the lack of a coffee shop in the local area.

The momentum generated from each new event has helped to see new couples and individuals attending different services, alongside the fortnightly Sunday morning services.

Christine said: “I’d really like to encourage people who are thinking of starting something similar.

“There were only a couple of us on the team who were able to get these things going, but slowly and surely we’re getting a small team together to carry on with this work.

“You don’t need a big congregation and a big volunteer team to kickstart things growing.

“We’re steadily seeing growth - not just church growth but growth within the community to serve and to support it and we pray this will continue.”