You may also recall, that at September\u2019s Governing Body, the bishops and the Standing Committee were asked by you to respond to the situation described in the Membership and Finance Report of 2008\/09 which drew our attention in particular to the fact that:<\/p>\n
Average attendance had continued to fall by 2% in line with the longer term trend.
\nAverage attendance among young people had fallen particularly sharply.
\nThe level of total direct giving fell for the first time since the statistics began to be collected in this format in 1990.
\nFor the first time since 1993, total parish income was less than expenditure.
\nThe proportion of parish expenditure spent on buildings had increased from 28% to 31%.
\nThese figures present challenges to us as a Church but also an opportunity to tackle them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n