The Church of England logoFaithWorshipLife eventsAbout the Church
Information Contact us
Media Centre Home

Tell us what you think about our website

Boundary Reviews

Duty of the Commission

The Dioceses Commission’s primary duty is to keep under review the provincial and diocesan structure of the Church of England and in particular

  • the size, boundaries and number of provinces;

  • the size, boundaries and number of dioceses and their distribution between the provinces;

  • the number and distribution of bishops and the arrangements for episcopal oversight.

Further information about the Commission’s current programme of boundary reviews may be found here.

Reorganisation Schemes

The Commission may make reorganization schemes – either of its own volition in consequence of its review work, or in response to proposals from diocesan bishops. Schemes normally require the approval of the diocesan synods concerned and always require that of the General Synod. If a diocesan synod does not consent, the Archbishop of the Province may nevertheless authorize the Commission to lay the draft scheme before the General Synod if he is satisfied either that

  • the interest of the diocese in the scheme is so small that a lack of consent by its synod should not prevent submission of the draft scheme to the General Synod, or

  • there are ‘wider considerations affecting the province or the Church of England as a whole that require the draft scheme to be submitted to the General Synod’.