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 The Parish Giving Scheme (PGS) is an exciting, free resource to help your church members and wider community give more efficiently to their church and save your parish valuable time! It is now possible for donors to give by telephone, more details below.
The PGS offers a direct debit covenant between a donor and parish that includes optional inflationary giving and automated collection of Gift Aid. The scheme was launched in our diocese in 2018 and has now been adopted by over 160 parishes with over 1,200 generous donors’ and ‘over £110,000 a month into parish accounts!
…nearly every donor increased their giving when they joined the scheme and in virtually every case their regular giving is now index-linked. This is a great improvement on the situation compared with pre-PGS! It will also reduce the task of completing the Gift Aid claim each year. Les Weeks, Treasurer (St Giles, Risby)
Why should my parish sign-up?
- To enable donors to give remotely using the PGS Telephone Service
- To sustain and maximise planned giving and grow the number of planned givers
- To lighten the burden (think banking cash, reclaiming Gift Aid)
- To protect against an ever-increasing digital society
- To increase and improve cash flow, especially through gift aid recovery
- To combat static giving as majority of donors choose to index-link their gift
- An opportunity to talk about giving and launch a stewardship campaign.
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. It has cheered our treasurers immensely after the initial workload. The Revd Tiffer Robinson, Rural Dean (Lavenham)
How does it work?
Example based on £50 donated monthly to a church.
How to join the PGS
Parishes should pass a resolution at a PCC meeting and complete the registration form.
Download the registration form and please return (with a paying in slip to verify the bank details) to: Diocese of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich, 4 Cutler Street, Ipswich, IP1 1UQ or email it to Julie Podd.
Registration form | DOCX
P romoting the PGS in your area
We have two banner stand displays available to borrow to launch/advertise the PGS in your parish:, please email pgs@cofesuffolk.org or contact Julie Podd on 01473 298555 stating dates wanted and which banner you would prefer:
Build a confident future for your church
Make a difference and support our church.
New Telephone Service now available for donors!
There is a new telephone service which means that donors can ring the PGS direct to set up their direct debit gift. A personalised notice for your church which can be used in parish magazines and in correspondence or posted on your A Church Near You page, website or any other online presence is available by emailing Julie Podd.
Donors can call 0333 002 1271 and will need to have the following information to hand in order to set up a PGS direct debit donation to donate to their church (lines open 9.00am – 5.00pm, Monday to Friday):
- The name of the parish they wish to donate to
- The PGS code for their parish (330-633-***) This is the one piece of information that the donor will not have so please ensure they have this information to guarantee the gift goes to the correct parish (this is available from your parish Treasurer)
- Personal bank account details
- They will need to confirm if they wish to increase their gift in line with inflation each year
- Confirm if they are eligible for Gift Aid.
Parish Giving Scheme Gift Form
If your parish has joined the scheme we can now provide you with a personalised pdf of the Gift Form with fillable fields for your church which can be completed, printed and then sent to the Parish Giving Scheme by post. This is particularly helpful if you wish to email potential donors. We would also suggest that the pdf is included on your A Church Near You Page and any online presence so that it can be easily accessed by those wishing to join the scheme. Please email Julie Podd if you would like to be sent the personalised pdf. Alternatively, you can add the parish details yourself (available from your PGS Project Leader) to the PGS Gift Form pdf to identify the gift to your church, eg St Catherine, 330-633-***, Norton, St Eds & Ipswich.
Parishes can still email pgs@cofesuffolk.org for PGS packs which include the Gift Forms.
Gift form | PDF
Resources
PGS explained leaflet | PDF
PGS poster | PDF
A short guide to the PGS with FAQs | PDF
Template Letter (addressed to regular planned givers) | DOCX
Template Letter (addressed to wider electoral roll) | DOCX
Testimonials | PDF
6 Steps | DOCX This guide provides an overview of how to maximise PGS reach.
Gift Array Exercise | XLS – This template can be used to calculate how mch on a weekly basis your church seeks to raise from the scheme.
PGS Change of Bank Account | DOCX
PGS Change of Statement Receiver | DOCX
Inflationary giving leaflet | PDF
For more information
Please contact Julie Podd, Parish Finance & Resources Advisor, for further information, to book a visit/event in your deanery or to visit your parish/benefice.
Please email
Julie Podd | 01473 298555 | 07826 556186
Alternatively email
Lee Jukes | 01473 298551 | 07721 219534
The Parish Giving Scheme (PGS) Team address: 76 Kingsholm Road, Gloucester, GL1 3BD. Email the PGS Administration team at info@parishgiving.org.uk. The PGS helpline telephone number is: 0333 002 1260 (telephone calls from a landline will typically cost no more than the national rate but this will depend on your communication provider.
Parish Giving Scheme | Weblink
Page updated 19 November 2020
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