Gift Aid Envelopes

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Using Gift Aid Envelopes

Churches will probably need two sorts of envelopes; one for regular weekly giving and one for one-off gifts given under Gift Aid.

There are at least five well-established suppliers of weekly envelope systems for churches, so the market is reasonably competitive. All suppliers provide numbered and dated sets, envelopes for special occasions (Harvest, Christmas etc), loose envelopes incorporating Gift Aid declarations for casual visitors, and weekly recording systems for Treasurers or Planned Giving Secretaries. Most designs are fairly traditional, although some of the ones for children and young people are “fun”. Remember that larger envelopes make it easier for donors to use £5, £10 and £20 notes!

Remember to place your order (and pay upfront) at least 3 months before the start of a new envelope year to get the best discounts. Expect to pay about £40 for 50 booklets of small envelopes, and £65 for 50 individually boxed sets of medium-sized envelopes. There are discounts for larger quantities. One-off loose envelopes (eg casual visitors Gift Aid, Harvest) range from £30 to £50 per 1000, depending on envelope size and design. Most suppliers require, or offer a promotional discount for, payment with order. A check on published price scales showed that no one supplier was consistently cheapest across all comparable products, and that most price points were fairly similar. The range of designs and quality of delivery service should probably influence your choice.

In alphabetical order:

Church Finance Supplies Ltd, 01235 524488. A clear traditional design of booklets and boxed envelopes.
Donation Envelopes Ltd, 0141 951 1847; www.donation-envelopes.co.uk Use the SEQUI format, a concertina strip of envelopes. Has a new, larger, self-adhesive envelope.
Envelope Systems, 01767 681717; www.envelopesystems.co.uk. A fairly modern and colourful range of boxed sets.
Lockie Envelopes Ltd, 01942 402510; www.lockie.net. A wide range of designs for booklets and boxed sets. Illustrations have a slight Catholic ethos. Watch for carriage and minimum order charges.
Stewardship Services – www.stewardshipservices.org

Tips for better envelope management

If your church passes the collection bag or plate along the pews, why not have a small card printed for donors who give by Bank Standing Order, which they can pick up before the service from the church entrance and drop into the offertory plate. The wording on the card could include a suitable text and something on the lines of: “I support God’s work here directly from my bank account”. It saves them the embarrassment of not putting anything into the plate, and recognises their regular support for the church.
Have a regular paragraph on the weekly notice sheet, to help visitors understand how the church is funded. Have wording on the lines of: “Most church members support God’s work locally through regular bank standing orders or weekly envelopes. If you are a visitor and would like to support our work, there are loose envelopes on the ends of each pew. If you are a taxpayer, you can increase the value of your gift by over a quarter (28%) at no extra cost to yourself. Please fill in the Gift Aid declaration, and we will recover the tax you have already paid from the Inland Revenue.”
Remember to thank personally every regular supporter at least once a year. And that includes volunteers whose main contribution is time and effort rather than money.
Work towards abolishing envelopes!! Now most people have bank accounts, encourage church members to give through monthly bank standing orders. Save your church Wardens, Treasurer and Planned Giving Secretary lots of time and effort opening envelopes, counting and banking cash etc. It increases the consistency of income, saves the Treasurer cash-flow headaches, cuts stationery costs and helps to save a few forests!