Are youngsters along the Costa del Sol turning to God?

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Finding Christ. Following reports that some churches in the province are attracting more youngsters, SUR in English set out to find out why

TONY BRYANT

Thursday, 2 April 2026, 14:18

As reported in the British press last week, data analytics forum YouGov has withdrawn a survey said to show rising church attendance in England and Wales. The data showed that more young people were attending church, with monthly attendance among 18 to 24-year-olds rising from four per cent in 2018 to 16 per cent in 2024. The poll was central to a Quiet Revival report, published by the Bible Society, but YouGov said that the data sample was "flawed".

Following reports that some English-language churches along the Costa del Sol are attracting more young people, SUR in English looked into whether this was actually happening or just an unsupported claim, as in the UK.

Reverend Tony Carroll, who took over as chaplain at the Anglican church San Pedro/Sotogrande in 2023, said that he has not witnessed a rise in interest from youngsters. In fact, he questioned the speculation coming out of the UK before the data analytics forum made its announcement.

"I have heard about the apparent rise reported in the UK press, but the empirical data seems unclear. We have certainly not experienced an influx of younger worshippers," the priest says.

Attracting a younger flock

However, Pastor Andrew Seale from the Ark Christian Church in Fuengirola told this newspaper that his church has noticed a "sharp increase" in youngsters.

"This is a very up-to-date question. We are definitely attracting a younger flock. This is for many reasons, but mainly because we are a little bit different. We are attracting a vast number of people between 18 and 25. This is a very depleted age group area. The church generally loses many youngsters by the time they reach this age group because they get discouraged and they leave," the 'youth pastor', says.

He believes one of the reasons for the rise in younger parishioners is due to the different activities his church offers them and their families. These include Sunday schools for different age groups (under nine-, nine-14- and 14–18-year-olds), summer camps and "mission trips".

The church also maintains the Ark school, which was launched by two parents and their two children in 2014: there are now more than 250 families in this school, which the pastor describes as "an incredible blessing to the community".

"We are actually seeing a bit of a phenomenon. When I first began at the Ark church in 2017 there were just three children, one of which was mine. We now have around 50 youngsters attending the Sunday schools. We also have two different groups outside of the Sunday School that are aimed at the younger generation," he adds.

The big question of life

Dave Hodgson, pastor of the Evangelical Elim Fellowship (who is also a radio presenter), also declares that younger people are turning to his church.

"We are seeing younger families coming to church. For a while now we have been attracting younger people of all nationalities who traditionally wouldn't be interested in church. We look at the big questions of life and the realities of being a believer in the 21st century. We have a great time singing worship and praise," he explains.

This church has a team of volunteers who teach the children each week through educational and "fun activities".

"We have become younger and more international. I think younger generations are looking for the truth in a world where it's difficult to know what to trust anymore. They are looking for the real and authentic relationship with God," he declares.

This is reiterated by Pastor Seale, who says that he believes "people are looking for genuine truth" in a world ravaged by conflict.