View source for Congregational Federation

{{Short description|Christian denomination in Great Britain}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox Christian denomination
|name = Congregational Federation
|image = Congregational Federation Logo.gif
|caption = Logo of the Congregational Federation
|main_classification = [[Protestant]]
|orientation = [[Congregational church|Congregationalism]]
|polity = [[Congregationalist polity|Congregational polity]]
|founded_date = Formed in 1972 from congregations which did not join the [[United Reformed Church]]
|founded_place = 
|separated_from = [[Congregational Church in England and Wales]]
|congregations = 235 {{small|(2024)}}<ref name="churches" />
|associations = International Congregational Fellowship
|area = [[Great Britain]]
|members = 
|publications = ''The Congregationalist''
|website = {{Official URL}}
|footnotes = 
}}
The '''Congregational Federation''' is a small [[Christian denomination]] in [[Great Britain]] comprising 235 congregations,<ref name="churches">{{Cite web|title=Find a Church|url=https://www.congregational.org.uk/find-a-church/church-finder|access-date=2024-04-08|website=www.congregational.org.uk|language=english}}</ref> down from 294 in April 2014. The Federation brings together [[Congregational church]]es, and provides support and guidance to member churches both financially and otherwise.

==History==
The Federation was formed in 1972 from those Congregational churches which [[Continuing church|did not enter]] the union of the [[Presbyterian]] Church of England with the [[Congregational Church in England and Wales]] to form the [[United Reformed Church]]. The leaders at the time were Reginald Cleaves, [[Margaret Wedgwood Benn|Margaret, Viscountess Stansgate]], John Wilcox and [[Elsie Chamberlain]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Team|first=CWM Communications|date=2017-12-11|title=Member Church feature: Congregational Federation|url=https://www.cwmission.org/member-church-feature-congregational-federation/|access-date=2020-10-01|website=[[Council for World Mission]]|language=en-US}}</ref> Margaret, Viscountess Stansgate became the Federation's first President.

The Federation was expanded in 2000 by member churches of the [[Congregational Union of Scotland]] that chose not to join their merger with the [[United Reformed Church]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Introduction|url=http://www.congregational.org.uk/introduction/introduction|publisher=The Congregational Federation|accessdate=26 April 2014}}</ref> 

It is a member of the [[International Congregational Fellowship]],<ref>{{cite web|title=International Congregational Fellowship|url=http://www.congregational.org.uk/who-we-work-with/international-congregational-fellowship-1|publisher=The Congregational Federation|accessdate=26 April 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426234219/http://www.congregational.org.uk/who-we-work-with/international-congregational-fellowship-1|archivedate=26 April 2014}}</ref> an international network of Congregational churches and their national associations. Some of its churches are also in membership of the [[Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches]].

The offices of the Congregational Federation are in [[Nottingham]], England.

==Ecumenical relations==
The Congregational Federation is a member of:<ref>{{cite web|title=Who we work with|url=http://www.congregational.org.uk/who-we-work-with/who-we-work-with|publisher=The Congregational Federation|accessdate=26 April 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302200609/http://www.congregational.org.uk/who-we-work-with/who-we-work-with|archivedate=2 March 2014}}</ref> 
*[[Action of Churches Together in Scotland]]
*[[Churches Together in Britain and Ireland]]
*[[Churches Together in England]]
*[[Cytûn]]

== Churches ==
{{Incomplete list|date=October 2021}}
The churches are organised into 10 geographical regions. CC stands for Congregational Church/Chapel.

=== Eastern ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Church
!Location

!Founded
|-
|Battlesbridge Free Church
|[[Battlesbridge|Battlesbridge, Essex]]
|1836
|-
|Braintree CC
|[[Braintree, Essex]]
|1699
|-
|Cowper Memorial CC, Dereham
|[[Dereham|Dereham, Norfolk]]
|1873
|-
|East Bergholt CC
|[[East Bergholt|East Bergholt, Suffolk]]
|1672
|-
|Guilden Morden CC
|[[Guilden Morden|Guilden Morden, Cambridgeshire]]
|1841
|-
|West End CC, Haverhill
|[[Haverhill, Suffolk]]
|1836
|-
|Hutton Free Church
|[[Hutton, Essex]]
|1850
|-
|Hatfield Road CC, Ipswich
|[[Ipswich|Ipswich, Suffolk]]
|1957
|-
|Worship Jesus Ministries, Ipswich
|[[Ipswich|Ipswich, Suffolk]]
|
|-
|Litlington CC
|[[Litlington, Cambridgeshire]]
|1815
|-
|Long Stratton CC
|[[Long Stratton|Long Stratton, Norfolk]]
|1821
|-
|Nordelph CC
|[[Nordelph|Nordelph, Norfolk]]
|
|-
|North Walsham CC
|[[North Walsham|North Walsham, Norfolk]]
|1657
|-
|Old Meeting House, Norwich
|[[Norwich|Norwich, Norfolk]]
|1643
|-
|Orsett Community Church
|[[Orsett|Orsett, Essex]]
|1842
|-
|Ridgewell CC
|[[Ridgewell|Ridgewell, Essex]]
|1662
|-
|Silver End CC
|[[Silver End|Silver End, Essex]]
|1929
|-
|Stambourne CC
|[[Stambourne|Stambourne, Essex]]
|1662
|-
|Steeple Bumpstead CC
|[[Steeple Bumpstead|Steeple Bumpstead, Essex]]
|1760
|-
|Thundersley CC (The Beacon)
|[[Thundersley|Thundersley, Essex]]
|1908
|-
|Tollesbury CC
|[[Tollesbury|Tollesbury, Essex]]
|
|-
|Wivenhoe CC
|[[Wivenhoe|Wivenhoe, Essex]]
|1672
|-
|Woodham Ferrers Chapel
|[[Woodham Ferrers|Woodham Ferrers, Essex]]
|1835
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website}}
*[http://conghistsoc.org.uk Official website of the Congregational History Society]

{{Christianity in the United Kingdom}}

[[Category:Congregationalism in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Congregational denominations established in the 20th century]]
[[Category:Organisations based in Nottingham]]
[[Category:Reformed denominations in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Christian organizations established in 1972]]


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