bath & wells: Parish Resources
Making the most of Gift Aid
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Using Gift Aid means that for every pound you give, your local church gets an extra 28 pence from the HM Revenue & Customs, helping your donation go further. |
| Our Gift Aid - made easy pack gives step-by-step guidance on running Gift Aid in a parish. |
If you want to give money under Gift Aid, all you need to do is to sign a simple Declaration or use a special Gift Aid envelope. Ask your church Treasurer if you need a form to sign!
(The information on the rest of this page is primarily for church Treasurers and Gift Aid Recorders.)
Gift Aid paperwork is simple, and the HM Revenue & Customs simply send you the cheque! All your regular givers should be invited to sign a Gift Aid Declaration form. This enables you to reclaim the tax they have paid without any further work on the donor's part.
Gift Aid - made easy - a helping hand
| Gift Aid - made easy was written with the help of three experienced parish Treasurers. It has 25 A4 pages packed with useful information for people who are newcomers to running Gift Aid, together with practical tips for old hands. The contents include: |
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- Worked examples showing how to keep your records and fill in HM Revenue & Customs forms.
- Frequently asked questions and sample letters to parishioners.
- Examples of 'borderline cases' from a fictional parish
- Notes on using computer programs to keep your records.
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Gift Aid - made easy costs £2.00 (incl p&p). Email us to order your copy, and we will invoice you.
(Offer open to Bath and Wells parishes only - packs sent elsewhere in the UK will be invoiced at £3.00) |
Three Practical Gift Aid Ideas for your church
| 1. Pens and envelopes in every pew |
| A box of ballpoints could be the best investment you ever make for your church. Put a pen out on every pew ledge together with a Gift Aid envelope. No more embarrassing games of 'hunt the envelope' or diving into handbags to look for a pen. |
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| All you need is a sidesperson who every Sunday makes sure each pew has one Gift Aid envelope and a pen ready for occasional worshippers to use. |
| 2. PYO - Print Your Own... |
| You can easily have localised Gift Aid envelopes made on a home computer. Anyone who is reasonably competent with a modern word-processor can print you off envelopes with your own logo, picture or message as well as the necessary Declaration. |
| Don't forget to use self seal, rather than horrible lick'n'stick! |
| 3. How much did you say? |
The IT for Charities website has devised a simple Gift Aid calculator that works out what any donation, Gift Aided, is worth. And, if Gordon Brown changes things, it even allows for a different rate of income tax.
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We need some envelopes...
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What about occasional worshippers and visitors? They too can use Gift Aid to increase the value of their donation.
The most common way to do this is by special Gift Aid envelopes.
Every parish should have a supply! |
Special Gift Aid envelopes help people make tax-efficient gifts to your church
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If you only need a small number (say under 1,000) the Parish Resources Office can supply you at £4.00 per hundred. All you need to do is add the name of your PCC to each envelope and put them out in church. Please send your cheque (payable to 'Bath & Wells Diocesan Board of Finance') to: Parish Resources, The Old Deanery, WELLS, Somerset BA5 2UG
Alternatively, if you need larger numbers of envelopes you will find it cheaper to purchase them direct from various commercial suppliers. They can also print a picture or church logo on your envelopes for you. These links will take you to the websites of four manufacturers. Try:
Another supplier is Church Finance Supplies, Radley Road, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 3SE Tel 01235 524488
Get the Gift Aid logo free
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The 'Giftaid it' logo is now available from the government-backed Giving Campaign. It provides a positive, friendly and simple way of drawing attention to Gift Aid on your church's publicity. |
| You can use the logo without any charge. It's available free in a Gift Aid Toolkit from the Giving Campaign website. Look for the downloadable set of logos, plus a .pdf booklet explaining how best to use the logo. Or you can order a free CD-ROM of the whole lot. |
More Gift Aid help
The Parish Resources Adviser will happily give advice on ways of increasing Gift Aid take-up, or put you in touch with others who have made it work for them.
You can also get authoritative information on how Gift Aid works direct from the HM Revenue and Customs Gift Aid website, which also allows you to download the relevant documents. The Charities Department who administer the scheme can be contacted on
0845 302 0203
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