Here's what we heard — June 2026

Last month we started closing the loop – telling you what people say when they get in touch with the programme, and what we do about it. Here's what happened in June.

Since then, another couple of dozen of you have written in. We're now at 123 responses to our open question, "Tell us about digital and the Methodist Church," from across the Connexion, and we read every one. There were fewer than in May – but they sharpened three things we hadn't fully heard before.

What we heard

• AI – and what it costs. AI came up more than almost anything else this month, and the worry has become specific. It's less "will this replace me" and more about the environmental cost – the energy and water it uses – and the ethics of where its material comes from.
• The nations, and decisions that feel far away. The largest group of responses this month came from Scotland, and we heard from Shetland for the first time. With them came a clear message: decisions can feel made a long way from where people actually are.
• The one person who holds it all together. Again and again, people described a single volunteer – the one who runs the website, the sound desk, the livestream – and what happens when that person isn't there. It's a quiet risk sitting under a lot of our churches.

Some of what people said

Quotes are anonymised. We've picked three across different roles.

What we've done already

• Online worship support is now live. In May we said it was on the way. The Online Worship Toolkit is now published – practical guidance on equipment, streaming and the rules around it, shaped by the people who told us this was where they most wanted help.
• We published the full listening report. Everything we've heard over the past few months – around a hundred conversations and more than three hundred survey responses – is now written up and public on our website.
• No one should have to be the only one. Several of you described being the single person who keeps the website, the sound desk or the livestream going – and what happens when they're away. We're exploring setting up a Champions Network for exactly that: a growing group of digitally-minded Methodists who share what works and help their own church and circuit. If that's you, you'd be welcome to join.

What we've forwarded

As always, some of the messages we receive are better answered by a person than by a list of themes. When something needs a pastoral reply, or belongs with another team or a local district, we pass it on and make sure the sender hears back.

The Digital Transformation Programme reads every response and publishes a "Here's what we heard" post at the end of every month.