Parish Giving Scheme

For a Parish Giving Scheme (PGS) Information pack please contact us

Our Christian presence at the heart of Lymington serves our community by sharing faith and values, by worshipping together and by our wonderful buildings. All of this has a cost, which is largely met by personal giving. For the Church to survive and grow, we rely on regular donations so that we can plan confidently for the future.

  • The PGS is an effective solution which can improve the efficiency and security of personal giving.
  • Donations made through this scheme use Direct Debits*. These can be on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis.
    This method of giving can replace regular donations made by cash or the envelope scheme in church services, or made by standing order.
  • Donations are dedicated to Lymington Parish and the scheme is guaranteed as safe by the Direct Debit guarantee provided by banks, and is operated in partnership with the Church of England.
  • For donors, PGS is EASY to set up, EFFICIENT, SECURE and CONFIDENTIAL; and you can choose to ‘Inflation Proof’ (index link) your giving.
  • For the Parish it reduces administration to a minimum and returns gift aid within 10 days.
    See this diagram which shows how PGS works.

*The direct debit processing system is the only payment method with a money back guarantee, and is therefore safer for the donor than standing orders, cheques and cash. If you want to read more about this, go to www.bacs.co.uk/Bacs/Businesses/DirectDebit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my details be safe?

The PGS has invested in a sophisticated Customer Relationship Management database, which is used by some of the UK’s largest charities. It is a secure system which adheres to the Data Protection Act.

What rate of inflation will be used?

Retail Prices Index (RPI) will be used as an independent and well known measure. The scheme will increase all relevant gifts using the rate for January of that year (if this rate is unavailable the rate for the previous January will be used for consistency).

What if I say yes to an inflationary increase, but my circumstances change?

We fully understand that circumstances can change; please rest assured that you will be written to 30 days in advance of any increase with the revised amount. If you are unable to meet it simply let us know.

Can I choose the day my gift is collected?

Unfortunately not. In minimising costs it is important that all donations are collected on the same day each month, which has been agreed as the lst.

Will our parish be charged for this scheme?

There is no direct charge to us for using the Parish Giving Scheme or processing your donation. The annual running cost of the scheme is met by our diocese (see http://www.cofewinchester.org.uk/diocesan-life/parish-giving-scheme).

How can they pay Gift Aid back so quickly?

The PGS database is HMRC compliant and allows automatic monthly processing of Gift Aid claims. The PGS will however pay our share of each claim in full, in advance of receiving it from HMRC, using their own reserves.

Why am I donating to the PGS?

In order to claim Gift Aid and manage the donation on behalf of our parish, it is necessary that your donation is legally given to the PGS who are handling all the administration on our behalf. The donation is restricted to our parish and cannot be used by the PGS for any other purposes.

Why can’t our parish offer direct debit?

Direct Debiting is a highly regulated system, and is only offered by Banks for established businesses or organisations who are considered financially sound and reputable with proven internal control systems.

What next?

For a PGS Information pack please contact us