The following chart indicates the relationship between levels of NCD health and the likelihood that a church has planted another church in the previous 5 years. Clearly the relationship is strong. As with all correlative data, it is important not to suppose a cause effect relationship here between health and planting. All we can say is that there is very strong evidence that if you want to pursue church multiplication, you would be wise to seriously address church health. Equally, if you seriously want to address issues of church health, you must open yourself to church multiplication dynamics (ie. multiplication of disciples, leaders, small groups, congregations, etc.)
It is noteworthy (and amusing to some degree) that the two lowest levels of health seem to have a slightly higher than expected rate of church multiplication. Though there is clear anecdotal evidence at that level that people are "sent" to "plant" a new church from such churches and are documented in NCD Survey forms as such, when in reality, many times they have simply had enough of their unhealthy church environment and decide to leave and start something new. Interestingly, by the third lowest health level, such people are perhaps a little more inclined to stick it out hoping for change where they are.
NOTE: This is NOT a global or Salvation Army specific sample but is taken from Australia where the Salvation Army's involvement in NCD has been far above its relative size as a movement. As additional data becomes available, we will move toward providing a Salvation Army specific global picture of this relationship between church health and planting.
The following chart expands upon the previous one by showing the likelihood of church planting within the previous five years depending on whether any one of the 8 NCD quality characteristics are at a very high or very low level. The most important message from this chart is that every characteristic is essential and has a significant bearing on that likelihood. As with general NCD progress, you cannot simply pick your favourite areas for emphasis. What's more, it should be noted that a church that develops in all eight areas will not only be far more likely to plant another church, but the holistic church "DNA" passed onto that daughter church will mean it is also far more likely to plant another church and therefore lead to genuine church multiplication and not just addition.
Having highlighted the importance of all eight areas, you will no doubt notice that effective structures has the strongest positive correlation between health and planting. Planting a new church involves taking some people out of the existing structure of your church and allowing them to restructure themselves into a new interdependent entity. It would seem clear that the churches best able to do this are those that have already disciplined themselves to continuously adapt the structure of their church to respond to the new thing God is doing among them. Given that the church is people and effective structures is therefore simply how you best fit those people together, such churches have not stopped asking themselves how all of their people best fit together into a fruitful body. Conversely, churches (traditional and contemporary) that allow their form, style, governance structure, etc. to become the non-negotiables to which all else and others must conform, will progressively ossify and become sterile due to a dwindling pool of (re)productive relationships and teams. In light of this, the fact that effective structures is The Salvation Army's international minimum factor is cause for considerable concern and is reason for serious discussion.
Liam Glover is the leader of a Salvation Army church planting church and has written an article about NCD principles and planting called Temporary Suspension of Gravity.