Welcome to Dioceses of Manchester, Chester, Leeds & Blackburn 4 Community

Giving, Generosity, and Thankfulness at The Diocese of Manchester

Giving, Generosity, and Thankfulness at The Diocese of Manchester image

Giving, Generosity and Thankfulness are essential aspects of our Christian discipleship. With input from across the whole diocese, including clergy, parish officers and St John's House staff, we have created a new and ambitious strategy. It has been designed to support every church as they seeks the funds needed to be the worshipping, growing, and transforming Christian presence that every community needs at its heart. Our aim is to help our churches address the themes of giving, generosity and thankfulness in order to grow and support each other, and better serve and work in partnership with their local communities.

Our work also includes the Gift Aid Lite scheme. This is an HMRC approved, agency based service, for the administration and claiming of donations received via Gift Aid and Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS). This is a ‘free’ service to all Churches in the Diocese of Manchester using a new ‘cloud based’ donations management software programme.

Newsletters

Our latest newsletters can be read here.

Social media and YouTube

If you'd like to follow us on social media please click on these links: Facebook, Twitter/X, and Instagram.  All of our training events, plus those we promote from the National Giving Team and other organisations, can be found on our Facebook events page. 

You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel.  This contains a number of useful playlists, including all of the recorded webinars from our online conference in 2022. 

  • Contact details

Paul Bailey, Diocesan Giving Advisor - paulbailey@manchester.anglican.org and 0161 828 1464

Emma Lomas, Gift Aid and Giving Support Officer - emmalomas@manchester.anglican.org and 0161 828 1424

Diocese of Manchester clergy training on Thursday 3rd July: save the date

Clergy in The Diocese of Manchester can now register to attend 'What is grant funding and how to apply for it' via this Eventbrite link.  The opportunity to register will end at 9 a.m. on Tuesday 1st July.

Diocese of Manchester clergy training on Thursday 3rd July: save the date image

Diocese of Manchester clergy training on Thursday 3rd July: save the date

Diocese of Manchester clergy training on Thursday 3rd July: save the date image

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Recent Success story

Please check the local recent success story section of the site for information about a recent grant award to one of the churches that have been taking advantage of the funding database.  If you'd like your parish to appear as a recent success story, please click here. 

This free Open4Community service has recently witnessed a large increase of declared successes.  Up to April 2025 it has helped its users to secure at least £702,000 of grant funding, but this figure is lower than the actual amount raised.  Please report your successes so your diocese knows their investment in Open4Community is working and needs renewing each year.  

If your church needs further assistance, please get in touch with your diocesan contact:

Paul Bailey, Diocesan Giving Advisor (Manchester) - paulbailey@manchester.anglican.org

Sheena Wilson, Buildings for Mission Advisor (Chester) -sheena.wilson@chester.anglican.org

Janet Edmond, Senior Stewardship Advisor (Leeds) -Janet.Edmond@leeds.anglican.org

Beth Vickers-Smith, Stewardship Advisor (Leeds) -Beth.Vickers-Smith@leeds.anglican.org

Sarah Noke, Community Development Funding Officer (Blackburn) - sarah.noke@blackburn.anglican.org

FREE ONLINE TRAINING - How to write a successful application for external funding

This webinar will outline how your church can write applications for consideration by external funders, including organisations such as charitable trusts and foundations. It is open to attendees from Manchester, Chester, Leeds, and Blackburn dioceses. It will include the preparatory work required to gather the necessary information before the writing process can start. Hints and tips will also be shared to enable your church to draft and submit funding proposals the recipient organisations will be interested in supporting. The training will be delivered by Revd Paul Monk, Incumbent, Benefice of Clarksfield and Waterhead; Heather Ford, Church Support Manager, Ecclesiastical; and Paul Bailey, Diocesan Giving Advisor, Diocese of Manchester.

Tuesday 1st July 2025 at 7 p.m. via Zoom, please register here. 

Thursday 30th October 2025 at 7 p.m. via Zoom, please register here.  

FREE ONLINE TRAINING - How to register and effectively use the Open4Community grant search portal

Open4Community, provided by Idox, is an external funding search facility which is free for parishes, church schools, and church hall users in the Dioceses of Manchester, Chester, Leeds, and Blackburn to use. It is an excellent tool and all potential users are encouraged to register and use it on a regular basis to gain the maximum benefit. This webinar will explain how to: register to use Open4Community; search for potential funders and find out more about them; utilise the other tools provided; and set up regular email updates on potential funding sources. After the training, attendees will also have the opportunity to arrange a one-to-one consultation with Matt Godfrey from Idox. During an online meeting he will provide guidance on how to use the site's search function to identify potential sources of funding to support your church's mission and ministry in its local community.

Tuesday 22nd July 2025 at 7 p.m. via Zoom, please register here.

Thursday 23rd October 2025 at 7 p.m. via Zoom, please register here.