In 1971 a Joint Working Party was set up by the Bishops’ Conference, at the request of the National Conference of Priests, to study the question of a Pastoral Strategy for the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It was the result of much heart searching and uneasiness expressed by the priests of the Conference about their own service in the mission of the Church.

In The Church 2000 (the first paper issued by the Working Party) the question was asked: ‘What did Christ establish the Church to do?’ We then went on to ask ourselves what the Church in England and Wales should be doing in the years ahead. We tried to answer both in the light of Vatican II applied to our own situation.