At any one time, perhaps 10% of UK churches are planning capital works that will require them to raise a significant sum of money, which might range from £50,000 for minor adaptations and improvements to £10 million or more for a major new build. This can seem a daunting task. So what are the key things to consider before you go about seeking to raise the funds? We spoke to our church appeals specialist Andrew Clark about how to run a successful appeal.
Church Fundraising Specialist
Andrew brings twenty years of fundraising experience, of which the last nine have been spent supporting churches of all denominations and sizes to raise the funds they need to grow and develop. As well as a Religion & Philosophy degree, Andrew has completed both the Certificate in Fundraising Management from the CIoF and is a qualified Prince 2 practitioner, so is well placed to advise churches on their projects. He most typically works with churches looking to raise £200,000 to £500,000. As a Christian himself, he has a good understanding of churches’ motivations and issues and is able to build trust quickly.
Get the Vision Right First
Andrew cautions churches against jumping straight into fundraising and suggests they first step back and look at the bigger picture, thinking about the role of the church in the community, its vision for the future and what it really wants to achieve, other than just fixing the roof or building a new kitchen and toilets. Developing a vision is critical for achieving success and this has to go beyond the basic practicalities. So the church leadership must lift its sights if the church is to inspire external donors (or even the congregation) to give to the work.
So what difference will the new facility will make both to the church and to the community? New facilities may be important, but the real impact is how they will change lives (for example, by helping to host groups of older people, young parents, disadvantaged groups etc and in so doing change their lives for the better). Vision is key, so time spent on getting this right is a good investment and it should all be summed up in a clear vision statement. Developing this document is also an opportunity to engage the congregation (and others) and get their buy in to the project.
Timing is also important. Andrew says “So often we find a church has engaged an architect, who comes back with a wonderful plan, but there is no indication of whether the church could raise the sums involved. That can mean scaling back the plans to make them more affordable. The better approach is to secure fundraising advice from the start, so you know what you are likely to afford before you brief the architect. That way you can save a lot of time and money.”
Plan the Appeal
So what is the best way to tackle a church capital appeal?
Andrew says if the amount required is less that £250,000, this can often be raised from a range of sources, including reserves (if any), members’ giving, grants and larger gifts from individuals. There is still work to be done but it is on a manageable scale and, with support, can sometimes be achieved within a relatively short timeframe and with no need for a formal funding feasibility study.
Where a church is seeking more that £250,000, however, this starts to become more challenging and the advice here is to conduct a feasibility study (not to be confused with an architect’s feasibility study). This will test a wide range of issues and come to a conclusion about the likelihood of success. In other words, it will tell the church how strong their chances are of running a successful appeal.
One important issue that the study will investigate is whether the Case for Support is strong enough. This is the compelling argument as to why anyone should support your appeal. What are the needs being addressed, what benefits will be created and what difference will be made to people’s lives? The aim is to demonstrate the vision, supported by facts, that will make people want to give because they believe in the cause and have confidence that it will achieve its goals.
A funding feasibility study will point to one of three outcomes, as follows:
- The appeal is viable and can go ahead
- The appeal may be viable but some issues will need addressing before money is sought
- The appeal is unlikely to succeed and the church should think again
As well as delivering important conclusions, Andrew says the funding feasibility study will also identify a lot of useful information (for example about potential funding sources) that will contribute to the appeal, should it go ahead. As part of the process, the study involves taking soundings from potential partners and donors outside the church to gain their feedback, which also helps to prepare the ground for an appeal and also reduces the risk of failure.
The Appeal Strategy
Assuming the result of the feasibility study has been positive, the next stage is to produce the appeal strategy, which sets out how funds will be raised, from which sources, by whom, at what cost and in which timescales etc. It is the detailed roadmap for the appeal and can be updated over time as the appeal progresses.
Implementation
The final stage, once the strategy is agreed, is to implement the appeal itself. Here, an important question is how the church will find the people with the time and skills to carry out the many tasks involved, which range from researching potential donors and funders to planning and running events, keeping detailed records, claiming Gift Aid, thanking donors and updating them on progress.
Where there is a shortage of skills and/or capacity, there is specialist help available and it is possible to buy this in. However, this does not mean the church itself can sit back and delegate all of the work to paid outsiders. Having some professional help, however, will bring in valuable skills and expertise which may be lacking, speed up the appeal and help the church to avoid common pitfalls.
Changing Times
So what does Andrew think has changed for churches in his many years of fundraising? “A number of things. Firstly, building costs have gone up, so the sums to be raised can be higher. At the same time, there is more competition, both from other churches and from mainstream charities, so the environment has got tougher. It is also the case that some income streams (such as EU derived funds) have disappeared, putting more pressure on other sources of funds. But there is still money to be raised, so churches should not give up.”
Top Tips
What other advice does Andrew have for churches seeking to raise serious funds? “Firstly, once you have got the vision right, do look in the round and not just at external grant makers. Some churches think they will just apply for a few grants and cover the cost that way, but that is rarely the case. They need to look at all potential sources, including not only the congregation, but also their reserves, the local authority, wealthy individuals, companies and also loan facilities. Most successful appeals are covered by a real mix of sources, so these need to be fully researched and explored if you are to succeed.”
“Secondly, don’t be afraid to take advice. Most churches come to a major appeal with little knowledge or experience of how it works, so a little advice can go a long way. Although there is a cost to this, it will normally repay itself many times over and help churches avoid making basic mistakes and losing time and money on wasted effort.
“Thirdly, while everyone is using AI these days, be careful not to rely on it too much to develop or run your appeal. There is a saying in fundraising that people give to people, so while AI can be helpful in doing basic research (e.g. on your community needs), it will not help you engage with people or secure significant funds. It also gets things wrong, so you need a human sense check backed up by experience of what works.”
“Finally, think carefully before you go public with your appeal. It is important to get a good proportion of the money in the bank or at least pledged before you ask more widely. Otherwise, people will hold back and not give, as they may lack confidence that you will achieve your target.”
Further Information
If you require help at any stage of a church building appeal, or just need to talk through the issues, please call us today to discuss your ideas for free on 01903 723519. We have worked successfully with many churches in recent years to help them achieve their funding goals.
Further information is given on our Church Capital Building Appeals page.
Finally, a copy of our paper on church building appeals, produced in partnership with the Church Growth Trust, is available free on request by emailing ben@wgconsulting.co.uk
For any church, we recommend a subscription to the online Church Grants database, where you can search for hundreds of potential Trust & Foundations for your church project https://www.churchgrants.co.uk/subscribe