Parish Giving Scheme

The Parish Giving Scheme (PGS) is a simple, secure and time efficient way for churches to receive direct debit donations and is designed to support churches to fund their mission and ministry from those generous regular givers within the church and in the wider community.  Donations can be made online, by telephone or by post. The service is freely available to all parishes and donors, and registering your parish is quick and simple.

Over 210 parishes in our Diocese are already benefitting from the scheme, with more than 1,600 donors giving regularly through the PGS, collectively giving over £130k (including Gift Aid) each month to their churches.  Across 2021, over £1.5m was given through the PGS directly to grateful parishes.

Why the PGS?

• The scheme helps to build financial resilience by making it easy for a donor to give their regular gift irrespective of whether they are physically in the church.
• By processing regular donations and Gift Aid on a church’s behalf, the PGS eases the admin burden and improves cashflow.
• Donors can choose to increase their gift annually in line with inflation. A £10 weekly gift setup in 2010 rising with inflation would be worth £13 in 2020. This represents an additional £140 per year per donor.
• Gifts can be set up online, by telephone or by completing and posting the Gift Form to the PGS.  Gifts can be managed online which keeps the donor in control of their gift.
• Parishes on the scheme are more likely to see an increase in total planned giving (donations) and gift per donor.
• Parish treasurers can view monthly statements securely online and can use the bespoke resources provided by the PGS to promote the scheme on their A Church Near You page, webpage and in parish newsletters.

“I’m not quite sure who to thank, but we are incredibly grateful to the Diocese for introducing the Parish Giving Scheme ... It’s definitely improved giving in our churches without a lot of effort … everyone finds having the Gift Aid as we go along much easier for cashflow and PCC members generally have reported that it's much easier to give than it used to be...”  The Revd Tiffer Robinson, Rural Dean (Lavenham)

Getting Started in Your Parish

1. Contact Julie Podd for a chat and then agree to join at your next PCC meeting or APCM. It’s free so there is nothing to lose! 
2. Complete the simple registration form found here and return it to us (with a paying in slip to verify the bank details) by email to pgs@cofesuffolk.org or by post to: Diocese of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich, 4 Cutler Street, Ipswich, IP1 1UQ.
3. Once registered parishes can download the link to their PGS giving page or use the QR code to promote the scheme in their parish.  The PGS have also provided resources on their website available to statement receivers which you can find here.
4. The diocese will forward a PDF Gift Form which includes PGS parish details, a telephone notice and link to the parish PGS page and suggested wording once a parish is registered with the PGS.  You might also want to do a Giving Review and there are useful resources here to help you.

For Donors – 3 easy ways to give

1. Online: on the PGS website here)
2. By Phone: Tel: 0333 002 1271
3. By Post*: use the printable pdf of the Gift form
4. Existing donors are now able to manage their regular giving online.  Having registered for an online account, they will be able to adjust the amount of their current donation, or change their options for Gift Aid, inflationary increase, or anonymous status.  Visit the PGS website here.

*This replaces the paper Gift Form dated 2017, which is out of date and should not be used.

Contact Details

Julie Podd | Parish Resources Manager | 07826 556186

Parish Giving Scheme | Weblink

Address: 76 Kingsholm Road, Gloucester, GL1 3BD.  Email: info@parishgiving.org.uk.    Helpline: 0333 002 1260 (calls from a landline will typically cost no more than the national rate but this will depend on your communication provider).

Resources:

PDF Gift Form (add your parish place, church, & code e.g., Buryan St Thomas, 330633xxx, St Eds & Ipswich) or request from pgs@cofesuffolk.org.

PGS giving tokens - Email pgs@cofesuffolk.org to request for your church (use on the plate).

PGS Banners - The diocesan office has two PGS banners (Make a difference, support our church or Build a confident future for your church) which parishes can book out by emailing  pgs@cofesuffolk.org, stating which banner and the dates required.  Banners will need to be picked up from the diocesan office at a pre-arranged time and date.

Parish Change of Statement Receiver/Bank Account Forms all accessed here.  Please also advise pgs@cofesuffolk.org of any changes.

Giving Review Form | PDF