The most comprehensive audit of chaplains in the UK has found that they are now from every faith, and are to be found in casinos, shopping centres and airports as well as their more traditional habitats of hospitals, prisons and the military.

The religion and society think tank Theos carried out more than 100 interviews over a three-month period to try to understand how chaplaincy is operating around the country today. It focused in on Luton as a particular area to study because of the “extraordinary breadth” of chaplaincy in the city.

There are currently an estimated 15,000 chaplains in the UK, with 169 in Luton alone (roughly one chaplain per 1,200 people). While they perform an important spiritual role for many, they are also increasingly plugging the gap in welfare services, mediating in conflict situations and challenging unethical practices in organisations, the report found.

With formal churchgoing in decline, chaplains are assuming an increasingly important role in society. “The proverbial man in the street seems as – perhaps more – likely to meet a chaplain in his daily life today as he is to meet any other formal religious figure,” says the report’s author, Ben Ryan. “The model is shifting from ‘church’ to ‘chapel’.”

The project included a detailed mapping of chaplains in Luton between October and November 2014. It discovered that there were 169 chaplains – approximately 1 chaplain for every 1,200 people. They were working in 16 different fields including Luton Airport, Luton Casino and  Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

The vast majority are volunteers with only 9% working full-time, and only 13% of Luton’s chaplains receiving a salary or stipend for their work.

Interestingly, the Anglican church still dominates the chaplaincy scene in Luton, although there were Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and humanist chaplains. But in Luton, only 7% of chaplains were Muslim (despite the population being 25% Muslim) while 87% of chaplains were Christian despite accounting for only 47% of the population.

When the researchers tried to evaluate what chaplains did, they discovered that their role often went beyond the spiritual.  Chaplains were often used to fill gaps in welfare provision (for example in university situations, or airport chaplains dealing with immigrants arriving with no employment or accommodation). One healthcare chaplain described his work as “60% non-faith” – talking through problems and mediating difficult situations. Muslim chaplains have been employed in prisons as a way of countering extremism.

Their work was often long and wide-ranging. An unpaid part-time fire service chaplain, for example, recorded that between 1st April and 31st June 2014 alone she put in 168 hours of work and 1,887 miles of driving to chaplaincy work, including two funerals, bereavement support, a baptism, policy and procedure meetings, and 44 separate visits to fire stations across the county.

The think tank says that more work needs to be done to evaluate what impact chaplains are having – in particular how they have brought about changes in the organisations where they are based, and the impact they have had on those whom they minister to, so that it can be better understood how they are effective. 

“Chaplaincy is a powerful potential resource for both organisations and faith and belief groups in meeting a wide range of missions and purposes,” says Ryan. “For faith and belief groups in particular, given the value of chaplaincy to them in the modern public square there needs to be a greater priority given to strengthening and improving the impact of chaplains.” 

Notes for editors

1. General press enquiries on the report, case studies and interviews with Ben Ryan should be directed to Glenda Cooper press@theosthinktank.co.uk; 07736481017. Ben Ryan can also be reached directly on 07823400680.

2. The full report can be accessed at: www.theosthinktank.co.uk/cmsfiles/archive/files/Modern%20Ministry%20combined.pdf

3. Theos is a religion and society think tank which offers research and commentary on issues of faith and belief. It was launched in November 2006 with the support of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, and the former Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor. For further information about Theos, visit https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/