Priests in some areas are expected to care for groups of congregations, while vacancies remain unfilled, in some cases for years.

They include the Saxon Shore Benefice covering six churches on the coast between Hunstanton and Brancaster, where two priests who left in 2023 have not yet been replaced.

Fr Clive Wylie, who looks after 14 churches stretching from the edge of the Burnhams to Fakenham, said: "We talk about vocation, we talk about a call from God.

"But is God not calling, are people not hearing - or is too much being expected of people?"

The 62-year-old doesn't count the hours he puts in but says he usually works from when he gets up in the morning to when he goes to bed.

Fr Clive Wylie, who oversees 14 rural churches in Norfolk (Image: Chris Bishop)

Campaigners are calling for the Church of England to provide more grass roots funding to save the parish system, where each church has its own rector.

Save The Parish (STP) has organised a special conference to discuss the effects of closing and combining........

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