Almost 100 people attended the event at Norwich School on Saturday.

It was organised by campaign group Save The Parish (STP), which is calling for more funds to be ploughed into the grass roots to boost the number of clergy.

John Brydon, Norfolk STP chairman and a churchwarden St George's Tombland in the city, said: "I was trying to present a positive overview of what could be done for the rural churches in the Diocese of Norwich, to maximise funds to pay priests and to make the groupings of parishes smaller rather than larger."

He said the meeting aimed to warn against what the group calls an “oversight ministry” model where rectors care for groups of churches.

Mr Brydon said this could spread priests too thinly, creating impossible jobs.

It has also seen services reduced, with some Norfolk........

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