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Hold the survey from November 2021 until March 2022
• How to coordinate the 2021 NCLS at your church
• The Attender Survey
• Other Surveys: Leader, Census, Child, Community
• Checklist of key tasks to Administer
Please refer to the Survey Coordinator's Guide, provided in your Survey Kit for the person coordinating the survey at your church. Also provided in your Kit are Site Instructions for Survey Day, displaying your NCLS Church Code, along with Instructions for other optional surveys including Child and Community Surveys.
Churches can choose anytime from November until March 2022 to conduct the survey. Churches normally select a 'survey week' free from special events e.g. baptisms, and survey all attenders at worship services, mass, small groups and activities that week.
To begin...
Timeline update- the impact of COVID restrictions
Due to COVID-related restrictions to meeting in person, some churches (particularly in NSW and Victoria) have decided to wait until February to run the survey. We encourage you to choose the time that best suits your church, between November and the end of February.
How is your church gathering? Together or separately?
Depending on your church's circumstances, suggestions are offered in the Guide on how to best run the survey at your church. Survey options include paper and online surveys that can be adapted to various levels of COVID restrictions.
A Survey Kit will be sent to your church:
A full list of survey materials contained in your Survey Kit, including types of surveys and online survey options can be viewed at 2021ncls.org.au/survey-kit
Read the Church Survey Coordinator's Guide for guidance on how to complete the 2021 NCLS surveys at your church. The Guide included in your Survey Kit is labelled with the NCLS Church Code(s) for your church.
Survey Coordinator's Guide
The Survey Coordinator's Guide has all you need to know to complete the 2021 NCLS surveys at your church.
Instructions for each survey
The Attender Survey
Site Instructions for running the Attender Survey are available for church leaders.
It gives directions on how to distribute materials to leaders of each Worship Service, Mass or activity, at each church location, site or Mass centre, where the survey will be held.
Whether you are completing the Attender Survey together or separately, face-to-face or at home, a set of resources are provided to help you run the Attender Survey.
Additional resources including the "On Your Survey Day" Video, QR Code, Display Slides and images, as well as Worship resources, are available online to run the survey at your church on your chosen survey day(s).
Click here to view full instructions and resources for the Attender Survey.
Checklist of key tasks in your chosen Survey period (from November 2021 to March 2022):
Before the Survey:
1. Each church may nominate a person to coordinate the survey. When you receive your Survey Kit, check over the contents, reading the Guide for Church Survey Coordinators.
2. Remind your church of the date(s) that the survey will be held. Invite them to bring along their smart device if they would like to complete the Attender Survey or Child Survey online during church.
3. If your church ordered Child Surveys (optional), provide Parent Information Sheets to parents and carers before the survey.
Completing the Survey: from November 2021 to March 2022
3. Circulate Site Instructions for the Attender Survey showing your NCLS Church Code, along with Attender Survey forms, Collection Envelopes and Survey Returns Coversheet to leaders of each worship service, Mass and/or activity where you are completing the Attender Survey. (Multi site churches need to distribute materials to each church location or site.)
4. If your church ordered Child Surveys, circulate Child Survey Instructions showing your NCLS Church Code, Child Surveys and Collection Envelopes to leaders of each worship service, Mass or activity where you are completing the Child Survey. Ensure parents and carers have received the Parent Information Sheet prior to completion. (Multi site churches need to distribute materials to each church location or site.)
5. If your church ordered Local Community Surveys, complete the survey during your chosen survey period. Invite community contacts to complete the Local Community Survey online, providing them with your Church Code.
6. Complete Leader Surveys (senior leader plus leadership team, elders etc.) and Church Census Form (church administrator) at any time during November.
7. Collect completed Attender Surveys and Child Surveys in Collection Envelopes and completed Reply Slips back from each worship service and group. The Survey Returns Coversheet should be completed for each location and included with their completed surveys.
8. Collect all other completed paper surveys (e.g. Leader Surveys and Church Census).
9. If your church completed any surveys online, track completion rates of surveys using your Admin Key online at surveys.ncls.org.au/admin-key. Remind participants to complete their survey.
After the Survey: 2 weeks after completion of surveys
10. As you gather all completed survey items, ensure that the Survey Returns Coversheet has been completed to ensure all items are included. (Multi site churches will need to complete a Coversheet for every location or site returning surveys).
11. Place all completed survey items and the Coversheets in the post pack or box.
12. Post back to NCLS Research, Locked Bag 2113, North Ryde BC, NSW 1670. Thank you for covering return postage.
Use the Return Address label
included in your Survey Kit to post your surveys back to NCLS Research.
Churches can re-use the postpack their surveys arrived in, by sticking the return address label over the original label and then posting back to NCLS Research at Locked Bag 2113, North Ryde BC, NSW 1670. Thank you for covering the costs of return postage.
NEXT STEP (in 2022):
AFTER THE SURVEY: In March-April 2022 you will receive your survey results and a resource pack to help you EVALUATE YOUR RESULTS.
1. Prepare 2. Administer 3. Evaluate 4. Communicate 5. Act