Gift Aid > Getting Started > Diocesan Schemes

Diocesan Central Gift Aid Schemes

Some Dioceses offer a central Gift Aid scheme which will process Gift Aid claims centrally. Currently the Dioceses which offer such a service are : Canterbury, Lichfield, Liverpool, Manchester, Peterborough, Portsmouth and Southwell & Nottingham. Diocesan Gift Aid Officers can be contacted through their respective Diocesan Offices.

The advantages of being part of this service are:

• High Standards of Service 
  Through the services offered and the training and support given, parishes can rely on a good standard of service, subject to scrutiny every 4 years or more often if required. 
• Continuity 
  A central scheme provides continuity when personnel within the parish change. The Diocesan Gift Aid Officer will have some knowledge of the claim history within a parish. 
• Preparation of claims 
  Claim forms are prepared, only requiring an authorising signature from the Gift Aid Secretary. The Diocese sends the claim to the Inland Revenue. Any queries from the Revenue concerning the claim are dealt with in the first instance by the Diocese. Parishes are reminded when claims are outstanding.
• Expert Advice
  The Diocesan Gift Aid Officers deal with detailed queries from Gift Aid Secretaries, offering advice on a day to day basis. Parishes in central schemes benefit from the extra knowledge on the Gift Aid claim history of their own parish. Training on how to use the Diocesan scheme is often provided for new Gift Aid Secretaries if required.
• Regular Audits 
  Most Dioceses operating a central scheme run a series of parish audits to ensure that the procedures in the parish meet Inland Revenue requirements. Most parishes find this a reassuring exercise, and advice can be offered, where necessary, on improving the parish’s own Gift Aid Scheme. 

Dioceses differ as to how they provide this service. Some charge a small proportion of the tax recovered on a claim by claim basis, others budget for the costs within their central budgets and recover the costs through Parish Share.