RECORD numbers have been seen at Christmas church services across Worcester.

Worcester Cathedral spokeswoman Sam Setchell said: "The Christmas Day services were up a little bit but the main service which went up was midnight mass which was up 10 per cent on last year."

At St Nicholas Church in Warndon Villages, parish priest David Ryan said it had the usual good turnout for its three Crib and Carol services on Christmas Eve, but had noticed a huge leap in numbers on Christmas Day.

"It was a very good year, especially on Christmas Day morning," he said.

"We had 50 per cent more than last year. That was quite striking."

And at Cannon Street-based Red Hill Baptist Church, minister Martin Hodson said: "On Christmas Eve we had more people than ever before, and Christmas morning we certainly had as many as ever.

"The Christmas Day service was standing room only, we had about 140 people there and we can seat about 113."

He said they usually held their traditional carol service on the Sunday before Christmas Eve, but it had been on the day itself this year.

"We thought maybe numbers would have been down on Christmas Eve because people might have already made plans, or be visiting family, but in fact more than ever came out."

He said they had welcomed a whopping 360 people to the service at Nunnery Wood High School.

The news follows last year's trend which saw a six per cent national increase in the Church of England's overall Christmas Eve and Christmas Day congregations for 2005.

Father Keith Enston, assistant priest at St George's Roman Catholic Church in Sansome Place, said they had held three masses on Christmas Eve and two on Christmas Day.

He said: "They were very good, they had about the same numbers as last year. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day it was very good, people were standing in the back."

Rev Frances Wookey, who looks after St James' in Welland, as well as parishes of Hanley Castle and Hanley Swan, said she had held Christmas Eve services in two of them, and Christmas Day services in all three.

"I would say probably it was a bit up on previous years," she said.

"It's difficult to say down to the last one, because sometimes people go to one and go to the other, but overall it was up."