Gift Direct
what is Gift Direct?
Gift Direct is a facility which enables Church in Wales members to make regular donations to the church of their choice via direct debit. The facility is administered from the Provincial Office and is a free service to churches. The annual gift Aid donations currently collected are £711,153 and the tax reclaimed £183,210.
If you have any further enquiries, please email giftaid@churchinwales.org.uk or call 02920 348 200.
All of the Gift Direct Resources can be previewed and downloaded here.
How does it work?
The Gift Direct scheme is easy for church members and parishes to use.
- The donor needs to complete a Commitment form and a Direct Debit mandate.
The Commitment form gives the donor details, confirms to which parish the donations are to be made and the amount of the donation. It also confirms whether or not a Gift Aid claim can be made to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
The Direct Debit mandate informs us of the account from which the donations are to be made, and gives us the authority to collect the donation from that account. The donation is taken on the 6th of each month. - When we have processed the details a letter is sent to the donor reminding them of the key features of this process along with a supply of Gift Direct tokens for use in the collection plate.
- The intended recipient parish is contacted to obtain bank details in accordance with the donor’s wishes.
- If any change is required to the commitment – increase, decrease, change to the recipient parish, amendment to bank details – we should be informed by the donor in writing or by email quoting the reference number that the donor is given. Any change will initiate a new letter containing the amended details to be sent to the donor.
- The donation is passed to the parish a few days after it leaves the donor’s bank account.
- The tax, which we reclaim from the HMRC, is forwarded directly to the parish bank account upon receipt. This is dependent upon HMRC returning the tax to us; their turnover rate is normally swift.
- We inform the parish Gift Aid Secretary on a monthly basis of the dates that they can expect all donations and tax associated with this scheme to be paid into their account.
- At the outset the donor is given the option of increasing his or her donation automatically each year in line with the Retail Price Index. If they choose to do so, they will receive a letter confirming the new amount. All donors (regardless of whether or not they have opted for the automatic annual increase) receive an annual statement thanking them for their generosity during the previous year. Experience shows that this will often prompt donors to ask for their donation to increase the following year.