The Church of England has released new statistics for 2005/06 showing that the average amount of weekly giving by CofE parishoners increased to £5.08 in 2005.

In addition a record 523,200 parishoners have started to give through tax efficient Gift Aid. The average Gift Aid giver is able to give £8.26 per week.

The Church's National Stewardship and Resources Officer, John Preston said, "Achieving £5 a week was quite a milestone and the latest figures show a further increase of 4 per cent in total tax-efficient giving.

"Church members continue to give generously to charitable causes compared with the population at large."

Average giving to the Church is around three per cent of average incomes, still short of the five per cent of disposable income recommended by the General Synod since 1978.

He explained: "The five per cent aim was based on the Christian tradition of tithing or giving away 10 per cent of income and the recommendation was to give half of that to the Church in thanks for God's gifts and half to other charitable works."

In 2005, the total income of the Parochial Church Councils rose to £792 million, whilst total spending also rose to £779 million. Of that, over £50 million was devoted to charitable giving by the PCCs to other charities and mission organisations.

The Church of England also found in its research that more people are training to become clergy and being ordained.

In 2005, the Church recommended 594 future clergy for ordination training. This was the highest number in over a decade and is part of an upward trend since the mid '90s. In 1994, 408 candidates were recommended for the training.

In 2006, 478 new clergy were ordained, a drop on the 505 ordainied in 2005 - the highest number since 2002. Also in 2006, marginally more women than men were ordained (244 women and 234 men), although the majority of these were ordained to non-stipendiary ministry.

At the end of 2006, there were 20,354 ministers licensed by Church of England dioceses, including clergy, readers and Church Army officers, equivalent to one minister for every 2,500 people in England.

"The nation continues to enjoy the spiritual ministry of an increasing variety of Church of England ministers, many of whom contribute to the health of their local community in a voluntary capacity," observed Rev Lynda Barley, Head of Research and Statistics.

The total does not include some 1,600 chaplains to prisons, hospitals, the armed forces and in education, nor around 6,600 retired ministers with permission to officiate.

Attendence to regular Sunday services dropped by two per cent after two years when numbers either increased or held stready.

The statistics show that 1.7 million people attend Church of England worship each month, while 1.2 million attend each week, and just under one million attend each Sunday.