What We Do
We can do more together than we can do on our own to see the gospel flourish in our region. So we’re joining forces to start a church planting movement starting in Manchester to one day impact the north of England.
Why plant churches? New churches reach new people. Church planting is God’s appointed means for fulfilling the Great Commission. Less than 4% of the population of Manchester currently attends a church and 60 new churches of 100 people would need to be planted by 2030 simply to keep up with population growth. The case for planting churches is compelling. We catalyse church planting in Manchester and the north of England through training, funding and caring for church plants.
Train
“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to gain a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” 1 Corinthians 9:25
We know training matters. So we run regular conferences and offer all levels of training for planters and their support teams from our diverse set of experiences and platforms.
Plant North
introductory church plant training accredited by London Seminary
Broadcast Church Planting
interactive online training from a wealth of knowledge and expertise, putting community at the heart of learning.
City to City Incubator
intensive in-context training
Fund
“”We couldn’t have done it on our own, but God brought in the resources. Now we want to give back so that others might have a miraculous new church experience of their own” Ed Stetzer, Planting Missional Churches
We know funding matters. So we’re setting up funds to support the planting of churches in Greater Manchester and beyond.
- Seed Fund – £300,000 replenishing fund. £63,000 has already been pledged by one of the founding churches. Planters will be able to apply for a grant of up to £30,000 payable over two years. The church plant will then be asked to pay back into the fund over the next seven years so as to ensure the fund is permanently replenished for the sake of church planting in Greater Manchester.
- Building Fund – to support church plants with grants and loans for the purchase of buildings in Greater Manchester and the North of England.
- Manse Fund – to support affordable housing through a shared equity arrangement for planters in areas they’re planting into.
Care
“Gospel coaching is the single most important ingredient in the health and thriveability of a church planter” – Dr Tom Wood, President, Church Multiplication Ministries
We know care and support matters. So we’re offering pipelines to help planters and their teams thrive.
Leadership Gospel Coaching
our goal is for every church planter in the city to have access to an accredited gospel coach offering an outside eye to their life and situation, and uniquely draw upon their extensive ministry experience to provide an insightful gospel framework to help the planter navigate into a healthier and sustainable trajectory.
Planters Collectives
groups of 5-10 church planters who meet monthly to share, pray for each other and receive ongoing peer-to-peer training. They are a source of enormous encouragement and support to church planters in the city.
Support Groups
for launch team members and planters spouses including Parakaleo – a resource developed by City to City Europe to provide support and care for church planter spouses.
2030 Targets
The earliest churches obeyed the Great Commission by planting new congregations to carry out the assignments of discipling, baptizing, and teaching that would begin the multiplication process of planting more and more churches.
Ed Stetzer