A major church tourism conference this November will see Christians knock heads on ways to increase the number of visitors coming to their church buildings.

The Churches Tourism Association's 2008 Convention, meeting under the banner of 'Sacred Britain: New Horizons', will explore ways to make churches more welcoming as well as the benefits of working with other faith groups as a means to attracting more visitors to churches, chapels, other places of worship and multi-cultural sites throughout the UK.

Keynote speakers include the Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport, Andy Burnham, chef, TV presenter and Chairman of the Churches Convention Trust, Loyd Grossman, and author and broadcaster, Sir Roy Strong, a long-time advocate of saving church buildings who believes that churches must open themselves up to wider use within the community if they are to have a secure future.

A series of workshops will be led by experts in church tourism, heritage, inter-faith work and ways to attract funding for conservation, preservation, the improvement of visitor services and new initiatives.

More practical workshops will cover `Welcome Host` training, faith guiding, what to put in a church guide, designing a church website and creating podcasts.

"This year`s convention is the most ambitious we have organised," said Canon John Brown, Chairman of the Churches Tourism Association. "We are indeed fortunate in having attracted such high profile guest speakers in their respective fields of expertise. Any place of worship which is keen to explore new possibilities or expand on its past experiences should consider attending this important gathering."

The convention is sponsored by the Civic Trust, Ecclesiastical Insurance, English Heritage, DCMS, Visit Britain and the Church of England.


On the web: www.churchestourismassociation.info