Bolton churches celebrated for use of technology

The Church for a Different World Awards 2022 took place on Wednesday evening (October 19) at Church House in Manchester, celebrating churches that embrace technology to grow, nurture and serve.

The Bishop of Bolton, Mark Ashcroft, and the Bishop of Middleton, Mark Davies announced nine Church for Different World digital awards in recognition of churches that are reaching out to their communities in new and innovative ways.

St Anne's, Turton, won at the awards (Image: Diocese of Manchester)

Four Bolton churches won awards, St James’ Daisy Hill, St Andrew’s in Over Hulton, St Anne’s in Turton, and The Antioch Network, which has churches in Bolton.

Also recognised were St Mary’s Ellenbrook and St Andrew’s Boothtown in nearby Worsley.

The ceremony marked the first time that the Church for Different World awards, now in their sixth year, have had a digital focus.

This was due to the growth of online worship and new ways of keeping in touch with people to offer pastoral support and tackle the issue of social isolation as a result of the pandemic.

The Bishop of Bolton, Mark Ashcroft (pictured), and the Bishop of Middleton, Mark Davies, presented the awards (Image: Diocese of Manchester)

The Bishop of Bolton, Mark Ashcroft, said: “We have been hugely impressed by the innovation shown by many of our churches over the past two years as they have found new ways to support their communities, offer different forms of worship online and deepen relationships with people using a variety of technologies.”

The Bishop of Middleton, Mark Davies, said: “We are proud of the way churches have adapted and developed new skills, while remaining true to their priorities of growing, nurturing and serving.

“We hope that by sharing their ideas with one another, our churches will be encouraged to try new things that have been shown to work well in different contexts.”