The National Centre for Pastoral Research carries out research projects that are of immense value to the wider Catholic church. Our projects include:

Core Projects:

• National Catholic Census Project (1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021)
• Australian Catholic Mapping Online (2011 —)
• National Count of Attendance (2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021)
• National Church Life Survey (2001, 2006, 2011 and 2016)  
• Synod on Synodality (2020 –)
• Plenary Council (2020 – 2022)

Topical Projects:

• A Profile of Catholic Clergy in Australia (2024)
• Evaluating the Implementation of “Woman and Man: The Bishops Respond” (Social Justice Sunday Statement 2000) (2024 – 2025)
• Absent From the Table: Australian Catholics who do not regularly attend Sunday Mass (2024 – 2025)
• Response to Governance Review Project (2023)
• ACBC-CRA Response to the Royal Commission Project (2023)
• Pedagogy Development: Building on Positive Learnings from COVID-19 (2021 – 2022)
• Central Coast Project (2021)
• Review of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival (2020)
• Governance in Australia Survey (2019)
• Survey of Religious Congregations in Australia 2018 (2018 – 2019)
• Understanding Religious Vocation in Australia Today (2014 – 2018)
• Australian Catholic Bishops’ Youth Survey 2017 (2016 – 2017)
• Our Work Matters: Catholic Church employers and employees in Australia (2015 – 2017)
• Building Stronger Parishes Research Project (2009 – 2015) 
• Priests in Australia 1950 – 2010 (2014 – 2016)
• Exploring Lay Pastoral Ministry in the Catholic Church (2014 – 2016)
• What do Mass attenders believe? (2014)  
• What Makes People Feel They belong? (2011)
• See, I am Doing a New Thing! – A Survey of Catholic Religious Institutes (2009)
• Catholics who have ceased attending Mass (2007)
• Who Goes When – Mass attenders and their usual Mass time (2004)

Miscellaneous Projects:  (Click here to access information on these projects)

• Employee Engagement Survey (2024)
• CathNews Subscriber Survey (2023)
• Formation Day Survey (2023)
• Survey of bishops and leaders of religious institutes regarding the joint CRA-ACBC meeting (2023)
• Catholic Communications and COVID-19 Survey (2023)
• Pastoral Care of Bishops Survey (2022)
• COVID-19 Working Arrangements Survey (2022)
• Return to Work Survey (2021)
• ACBC Decennial Half-way Review – Bishops and Staff Surveys (2021)
• Disability Projects Office – 10-year Review (2021)
• Staff IT Survey (2021)
• Professional Development for Bishops Survey (2020)
• Survey of Consecrated Virgins (2020)
• Ad Limina Reports (2019)
• Clergy Life and Ministry – International Priests project (2018)
• Catholic Cemeteries NSW (2016)
• Called to Serve: Overseas-born Priests Working in Australia (2016)