Christians are free to worship in China if they register with the state-approved churches, but millions of evangelical Protestants refuse to submit to government control. Estimates put the number of underground Christians at 40 million, with some claiming there are as many as 80 million. Shouwang church was founded in a flat in 1993 but now has 1,500 members. It claims to have been blocked from taking possession of a £2.5 million building it bought in 2009.