'PEW for two' could soon be ringing out in a church near you -- that's if Preston vicar Alison Gilchrist has her way.

The Rev Gilchrist is urging churches to follow the example of McDonald's and Asda in a bid to boost the dwindling numbers of worshippers.

Reverand Gilchrist, assistant curate of St Cuthbert's, Fulwood, was so concerned about people not going to church that she's written a book to advise her fellow brethren on how best to welcome newcomers.

"People want to feel welcome if they are visiting a church," she said. "And I feel that sometimes regular churchgoers are comfortable themselves and become blind to making new people feel comfortable."

She says the fast food chain and the supermarket have perfected the art of greeting people to improve their brand and retain customers.

"McDonald's is one company whose entire ethos is geared around making us feel welcome and ensuring that we'll 'call again'.

"ASDA Wal-Mart have of late installed greeters at the entrance to their stores," she said, and she suggests churches could learn from them.

"I remember seeing people being told 'move that's my seat' or church members giving a visitor a telling off about a chattering toddler."

The mother-of-two contacted more than 100 churches before writing the book, Creating a Culture of Welcome in the Local Church, which covers everything from training for church greeters to easily read notice boards, and from tidy toilets to the need for clear instructions for following services.

Between 2000 and 2002 around 100,000 people stopped attending church, the number of churchgoers were down from 1,274,000 to 1,166,000.

The recently appointed curate thinks the dwindling numbers of the Church of England could be boosted by better greeting to retain new members. "This book is for anyone in the church who is interested in making the church more of a welcoming place," she added.