Welcome to ‘Giving at Leyland Methodist Church’ We hope you find this information helpful and that it gives answers to questions which you may have.
What is Giving?
We believe that giving is done in three ways through the giving of: TIME, TALENT and FINANCE.
Together these three enable LMC to fulfil its mission of linking people’s lives through Jesus, not only in our church but also in the wider local community and beyond. Together they give us the resources to enable us to grow as Christians, equip us to fulfil God’s purposes and pay the bills!
TIME
You will have noticed that there is no shortage of weekly and occasional activities going on at LMC from youth work to bible study, from community café to drama. These activities take people’s time not only in leading the activity but also in attending too.
TALENT
Such wide- ranging activities demand a whole range of different talents and skills on the part of those leading. Some people may have a gift for music and others may acquire the skills necessary to provide the IT support on a Sunday, these are just two examples.
FINANCE
Like any domestic household LMC has bills to pay. These include those for the upkeep of the premises such as gas and electricity, maintenance, the salaries of paid staff and contributions towards the cost of manses etc as required by the Methodist Church.
How do we do it?
You will have noticed that we do not pass a collection plate around on a Sunday morning, nor are we constantly asking for help to run things or to raise funds. This is because since 1961 we have been a Stewardship Church.
What is Stewardship?
Stewardship in its broadest sense means looking after what we have been entrusted with and planning for the future. Whether it be for people or premises, we are charged with providing the best we can to the best of our ability.
Every three years, the next is due in Spring 2019, we have a two- week concentrated focus on the giving of time, talent and finance. We call it ‘The Stewardship Campaign.’ During that time preaching and prayer as well as the treasurer focus our minds on what we give under those three headings. Perhaps it is time to offer to do something in church either leading or attending? Maybe it is time to hand something over to someone else to enable us to do that different thing? Possibly it is time to increase our financial giving?
Committing or pledging as it is called for three years enables LMC to plan its work and undertake big projects, safe in the knowledge that we will have the resources to complete them. A lot of preparation goes into the Stewardship Campaign. The Stewardship Team (Team Leader Mr Steve Austin) leading the campaign consult with the various groups in the church as to where the vision for the future lies. Is it funding a whole new project like a Youth Worker or in difficult times will the roof need major repairs and how much will the price of gas increase by. The treasurer will work out how much we need to fund the next three years and present the congregation with a target. He sensitively indicates what sort of percentage increase he is looking for, mindful that each person listening has unique personal circumstances and demands on their finances, time and talents.
Of course, it is appreciated that three years is a long time to commit to and during the three years if circumstances change then it is perfectly reasonable for people to amend their giving of time, talent or finance.
Because people decide to give a certain amount of money each week or month for hopefully the next three years, we ask people to set up a Standing Order to the church for that amount. A form is attached if you would like to complete one or amend your giving. Please return it to the treasurer: Mr Bryan Noon. This is a confidential undertaking with only the Treasurer and Gift Aid Secretary having access to it. It means that there is a regular amount coming into the church. We now have most people giving in this way, so much so that on Sunday morning we often had nothing put on the plate. It was decided therefore that a plate would be placed in the foyer for people wishing to make donations.
Stewardship requires us to look after our resources to the best of our ability and one way we do this is by claiming Gift Aid.
What is Gift Aid?
Gift Aid has operated in its present form since 1993. Successive governments have supported its continuation. Gift Aid allows us to claim back from HMRC an additional sum of money from donations made by income taxpayers. At the moment, if a taxpayer signs up to Gift Aid we can claim a further 25%. For example, if someone donates £100 per month, we can claim an additional £25. This amounts to a tidy sum each year and in the year 2017/18 from GA giving of £77,805 we received a further £19,249.25. It is a very simple process: you fill in a declaration form (a form is attached if you would like to complete one) which only requires your name and address – not even a signature and return it to the Gift Aid Secretary Mrs Yvonne Taylor yvonnetaylor161@btinternet.com and she will do the rest. Again, it is a totally confidential process with only the GA Secretary and Treasurer accessing the information. All we need is for you to notify her if you stop paying enough income tax to cover the claim or change address. As an example: A person donating £100 in a year would need to be paying £25 in tax in that year.
We do hope that you have found this information useful and that you will be richly blessed in your time at LMC.
Useful Contacts:
Stewardship – Steve Austin steve.austin@fastnet.co.uk
Treasurer – Bryan Noon bryannoon@hotmail.co.uk
GA Secretary – Yvonne Taylor yvonnetaylor161@btinternet.com