Church Website Design: What Every UK Church Needs to Know
In most cases, your church website is the first place someone will encounter your church — long before they step into a service, speak to a pastor, or follow you on social media.
Whether they’re searching for “churches near me,” checking your service times, or just trying to get a feel for what you’re like, your site plays a key role in that first impression. It needs to be easy to use, up to date, and a true reflection of your church community.
This guide will walk you through what makes a church website effective — especially for churches in the UK — and how to build one that supports both visitors and regular members.
One Website, Two Audiences
Every church website has to serve two main groups:
New visitors — people who are looking for a church, exploring faith, or planning their first visit. They need to find the essentials quickly: where, when, what to expect, and how to get in touch.
Regulars — members of your church who use the site for things like rotas, contact info, links to livestreams, or upcoming events.
It’s easy to build a site that leans too far in one direction. The most effective church websites are designed with both audiences in mind — with visitor experience as the priority.
If you need to include internal tools or team access, add a clearly labelled “Church Members” section. That keeps things tidy, without confusing new visitors with information that’s not for them.
What Should a Church Website Do?
A good church website doesn’t need to be complicated. At a minimum, it should help someone:
Understand who you are
Find out when and where you meet
Know what to expect
See what else is happening
Get in touch or take a next step
Everything else — sermon archives, blogs, fancy design features — is optional.
Essentials of Good Church Website Design
These are the building blocks that make a church website clear, useful, and inviting:
Make it obvious what you’re about
Within a few seconds of landing on your homepage, someone should know:
Where you are
When you meet
What kind of church you are
Use plain, human language — not internal language or vague vision statements. “We’re a local church meeting in the heart of Sheffield every Sunday at 10:30am” is far better than “A Spirit-filled community advancing the kingdom.”
Keep the menu simple
Stick to a handful of top-level pages. The goal is clarity, not coverage. For most churches, this works well:
Visit Us
What to Expect
About / Our Vision
Kids & Youth
Get Involved
Contact
(Optional) Church Members
Avoid dropdown menus with endless subpages. If someone’s new, they won’t know where to click — and they may just leave.
Prioritise mobile users
Most people will visit your site on their phone. That means:
Text should be large and easy to read
Buttons should be big enough to tap
Images should load quickly and resize correctly
Always test your site on mobile before launching or making changes.
Location and times need to be front and centre
Don’t make people dig for this. Your service time and venue should be visible on the homepage — ideally near the top, and also in the footer.
Add your postcode and a Google Maps link, and briefly describe the local area (e.g. “Meeting at Springfield Community Hall, just off the A22”).
Use real photos
Stock images often look polished but feel generic. Real photos — even taken on a phone — create connection. Feature your building, people, worship, kids groups, or even set-up time.
Avoid posed group photos unless they truly reflect your community. And be mindful of image permissions, especially with kids.
Write for skim readers
Everyone skim-reads online. That means your content should be:
Broken into short paragraphs
Titled with clear headings
Easy to scan with bullet points and lists
Highlighting key information without over-formatting
This isn’t dumbing down — it’s removing friction.
Make the next step obvious
Once someone has found your service time and had a look around, what do you want them to do?
Add a clear call to action:
Plan Your Visit
Get in Touch
Join a Group
Try Alpha
Come This Sunday
Include a visible button or link on every key page. Don’t leave people guessing.
Keep Your Website Updated
An outdated website tells people you're not paying attention. That may not be true — but it’s the message it sends.
If your homepage still has Easter events in July, or your last sermon upload is from 2022, it undermines trust. Keep these things fresh:
Home page notices
Event banners
Staff/team listings
Key dates and seasonal content
Media (sermons, talks, livestreams)
You don’t need to change things weekly. Monthly or termly works — as long as what’s there is still relevant.
What Platform Should You Use?
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but here are the most common options for churches:
Platform
Squarespace
Wix
WordPress
Church-specific platforms (e.g. UKChurches, Church123)
Best For
Clean, simple sites
Flexibility and ease of use
Full customisation
Church templates and support
Notes
Great for smaller churches
Beginner friendly, smaller churches
Ideal if you have a developer
Somewhat rigid, but useful if you want built-in church features
If you’re not sure what’s best for your church, that’s something we can walk through on a free call.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
No service times on the homepage — make them visible and obvious.
Too much for insiders — things like rotas, notices, or leadership forms should be kept separate.
Too much text — long, unbroken paragraphs put people off.
Outdated design — if it looks like it hasn’t changed in 10 years, it might be time.
Missing contact info — always include a way for people to get in touch easily.
Unclear tone — make sure your site sounds like your church, and stays consistent.
What About Social Media?
Social media is great for building connection week to week, but it’s not a replacement for your website. Think of your website as your base — the place people return to when they want reliable info or next steps.
We’ll cover this in more depth in our upcoming guide to church social media strategy.
How Do You Show Up on Google?
We’ll go deeper into this in our SEO-specific content, but here’s a quick start:
Use your town and neighbourhood in your homepage copy
Add alt text to your images
Use proper page titles and headings
Include a Google Maps location
Submit your site to Google Search Console
Your site doesn’t have to rank for everything — just enough to be visible when people are looking for a church like yours.
At Flock & Canvas, we help UK churches design websites that work. Whether you’re building from scratch or need a refresh, we’ll help you create a site that’s clear, warm, and built to last.