The Church Commissioners achieved a return of 9.4 per cent on their investments in 2007. This far exceeded the return of 7.0 per cent from the fund's comparator group for that year, the WM All Funds Universe.

WM All Funds Universe is a collection of the investment results of UK pension funds and is widely used as an independent measure of the performance of funds.

Over the past 10 years, the Commissioners' total return on their investments has averaged 9.5 per cent per year - placing them in the top two per cent of funds in the WM All Funds Universe for the decade.

As a result of this 10-year performance, the Commissioners' asset value has grown to £5.67 billion, and the fund has been able to distribute £37 million more each year to the Church than if the investments had performed only at the industry average of 7.1 per cent per year over the last ten years.

Over the last five years, the Commissioners have outperformed the comparator group, achieving returns of 14.5 per cent per year, against the benchmark of 13.1 per cent.

Andrew Brown, Secretary to the Church Commissioners, explained: "Strong performance from our property portfolio was the major contributor to our success in 2007. But during the year and over the longer term, the spread of asset types within the fund and the strength of the Commissioners' stock selection have both contributed to these robust results.

"We were particularly pleased by the performance of our commercial, rural let land and strategic land sectors last year, but our quoted equities portfolios underperformed their benchmarks, in part due to the continuing strength of stocks excluded on ethical grounds.

"At a time of tighter finances across the economy, these returns will help the Church of England continue to fulfill its mission to serve all the people of this country.

"We manage our investments for the long term and, while we cannot be immune from the current uncertainties in the world economy, we have a diverse portfolio and are well positioned to weather difficult financial conditions."

The Church Commissioners manage the historic resources of the Church of England and contribute around 17 per cent of the cost of running the Church - the vast majority of the costs are met by the generosity of local parishioners.

The Commissioners' activities in 2007 included providing £32.9 million towards parish-level ministry and mission projects around the country. This compares with £32.4 million last year.

The key elements of the Church Commissioners' investment portfolio, as at 31 December 2007 are set out below. The 2006 levels are in brackets.

Investments, including fixed interest, UK and overseas equities: £3,601.6million (£3,349.9 million) Investment properties, including urban, let land, strategic land and global indirect property holdings: £1,598.0 million (£1,428.9 million); Other investments, including loans, short term deposits and cash: £441.2 million (£573.8 million).

Serving the Church

Details of how the Church Commissioners support the Church of England's ministry are set out in the Annual Report published today. It details the contribution that the Commissioners make to the ministry of each of the Church's 44 dioceses, in addition to their major role of funding all clergy pensions earned before 1998. This contribution includes supporting the ministry of bishops and cathedrals, as well as parish ministry particularly in poorer dioceses.

In 2007, the Church Commissioners continued to provide significant support to encourage the growth of the Church's existing ministries and new opportunities. Since it began in 2002, the parish mission fund has given dioceses extra resources for parish ministry totalling £24.2 million, including £4.6 million in 2007.

The Commissioners' total expenditure in 2007 was £177.8 million (£172.6 million in 2006). Total non-pensions expenditure, including support for ministry within dioceses and for the ministry of bishops and cathedrals, totalled £72.3 million in 2007 - an increase of £2.4 million on the previous year.

The main items of expenditure were (with 2006 figures in brackets):

£105.5 million (£102.7 million) for clergy pensions based on service before 1998

£32.9 million (£32.4 million) for parish ministry, primarily to less-resourced dioceses

£24.9 million (£24.5 million) for supporting bishops in their diocesan and national ministries

£6.8 million (£6.6 million) for stipends of cathedral clergy and grants to cathedrals, mainly for staff salaries

£7.7 million (£6.4 million) for other support including administration and restructuring costs, support for other Church bodies and church buildings