Smash hit

Whereas in 1990 there were more than 11,000 stipendiary clergy, by 2007 there were barely 8,300 and by 2012 this is projected to be 7,920.

Meanwhile, the number of senior clergy has barely changed. In 1959 there were 14,380 stipendiary clergy, of which 377 were senior clergy. By 2007, there were still 347 senior clergy, in spite of a fall of 6,000 in clergy numbers.

Although all but ten of 339 ordinands graduating from theological colleges into stipendiary ministry have found posts this year, it is becoming increasingly hard for them to find work as the emphasis shifts to voluntary, unpaid service among the clergy. The same could soon be the case for the episcopacy.

Dr Hartley, Vicar of Eccleshill in Bradford, said: “There has been no examination about whether we actually cut the number of bishops, archdeacons and suffragan bishops, cathedral canons and deans.

“All that has happened is that every time there have to be cuts, the parish clergy get cut.”

The Church Commissioners who manage the Church’s historic assets spent £7.3 million in maintaining diocesan bishops’ houses in 2008 and £14.5 million in grants for bishops’ support staff, office and working costs.

“The maintenance of episcopal apparatus, support services and expenses produces a Church that appears top heavy,” says a briefing note prepared by the Bradford diocese.

The motion will be debated alongside proposals to cut back on spending at the Church of England administrative headquarters in London over the next five years and encourage Church members to donate a greater proportion of their income to the Church.

The Commissioners earlier this year disclosed that the value of its portfolio shrank to £4.4 billion during 2008 compared with £5.7 billion the year before.

The General Synod is also facing “difficult decisions” in the wake of a clergy pension scheme currently in deficit to the tune of £352 million for the period since 1998.

Although church attendance is in slow but gradual decline at just under a million in Church on Sundays, giving by congregations is holding up well as worshippers respond generously to the needs of their Church.

William Fittall, General Secretary of the Synod, said: “We are not in a situation of panic but we are in a situation of real pressure and a huge increase in pension costs is a real problem.”