Church Commissioners written question – answered at on 4 September 2025.
Andrew Rosindell
Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs)
To ask the hon. Member for Battersea, representing the Church commissioners, how many ordinations to (a) the diaconate and (b) the priesthood there have been in each year since 1993.
Marsha de Cordova
The Second Church Estates Commissioner
The National Church Institutions only hold limited central data on the number of ordinations of deacons and priests. Diocesan bishops, together with some area bishops and Diocesan Directors of Ordinands, are responsible for assessing the vocations of candidates for the priesthood and deciding locally which are ready for deaconing and priesting. What information is available centrally is regularly published as part of ministry statistics on the Church of England website (under ‘About’, then ‘Data Services’)
The initial formation period for candidates is part of a discernment process, and not every candidate who begins training will complete it within a fixed timeframe or be considered ready for ordination as a deacon or priest at the end. Because vocations and ordinations are personal, comparing data year-on-year is usually less helpful than examining longer-term trends.
The trend seen in the centrally available data shows that since 1997, the number of deacons ordained has roughly doubled, and since 2007, it has stayed relatively steady. Efforts are already underway to address the recent decrease in the number of candidates for deacon.
Level of Ordination by year (Deacons)
1997: 262
2001: 295
2002: 313
2003: 333
2007: 552
2008: 574
2009: 564
2010: 563
2011: 504
2012: 494
2013: 484
2014: 500
2015: 498
2016: 484
2017: 488
2018: 503
2019: 580
2020: 580
2021: 610
2022: 540
Level of Ordination by year (Deacons and Priests)
2023: 513 Deacons, 519 Priests
2024: 462 Deacons, 508 Priests
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Matters concerning the established Church of England are dealt with at Question Time by a parliamentary representative of the church commissioners.
The church commissioner's role is to answer any parliamentary questions relating to the Church of England in the same way that a government minister may face questions about a particular government department.
The Second Church Estates Commissioner is appointed by the crown and is traditionally a backbench member of the party in government. The appointment lasts for the duration of the Parliament.
