'I help churches find money' 

After leading a Baptist church for more than 20 years, Chris Upton is now Church Funding Officer for the national charity Christians Against Poverty. He explains there are more options open to churches, and why we need to think outside the box

I contributed to Baptists Together magazine a couple of years ago, highlighting why I helped West Lane Baptist Church engage in Haworth’s community so much. At that time, I had been a minister for around 20 years.

In January of this year, I stepped down from the pulpit and took up a part-time role as the Church Funding Officer for the national charity Christians Against Poverty (CAP). 

Having gone deep into one local community I felt drawn to spread my wings and work with a broader remit. I love that CAP is focusing on life skills, money coaching and job clubs, along with its main work on getting people out of debt…(and I am thoroughly enjoying being a regular member of the church now, rather than the minister!)

Although working for CAP is in many ways very different from being a local church minister, I am finding a good degree of overlap, and the last 23 years are having a great and beneficial impact on how I am undertaking my new role.

So, what is the role?  Quite simply,  “I - help - churches - find - money.”

From my experience, churches have always relied upon the church congregation to dig deep into their pockets and to give generously, and when something more is needed we have often looked to grant-making bodies to make up the difference.

But there are many other ways possible as well. 

Here is a little taste of some of my thinking…

We at CAP recognise the huge financial commitment it takes to fight poverty and stand alongside those in need. A recent survey of churches that run CAP services found that a huge number of different income streams are possible.
 
Out of 95 churches that responded:

• 66 received from congregational giving via standing orders
• 57 received cash or one-off gifts from church members
• 60 received income from other supporter churches
• 51 had support from grant-making bodies
• 37 ran special ‘one-off’ events
• 8 used the internet for crowdfunding
• 6 had income given to them by local businesses
• 5 had installed a ‘tap-and-give’ machine in their building
• 3 inherited money from a legacy

 
There were five other streams of income that came into local churches as well.
 
Some of the above may be quite well known to you, but others have come about due to recent technological changes. Using smartphones to record very localised appeals and then utilising social media to publicise them can be successful at raising money and increasing local awareness of your project.

The internet and various search engines give very easy access to the once opaque world of grants and trusts. Some of these are now using artificial intelligence to help small charities write their funding bids.
 

Four basic elements are key:

We need to think ‘outside the box/church’

God is at work in the world outside the church and there is a great amount of philanthropy and money that might be garnered from people who would never usually darken the church’s doors.

Many business people are very aware of their responsibility to enhance rather than degrade the community they live in. Some sponsor roadside verges, some fund a well-being prize for the local school… (and some might contribute to your local CAP work!)

Good relationships are central
 
“No man is an island, entire of himself (sic) …”  
 
John Donne said this 400 years ago, but it is still true. We are all weaved into each other's lives and if we see every human being as a child of God, precious and valuable and unique, we will work hard at building good relationships for their own sake. 

These relationships may (and experience says will) increase the likelihood that funding for our CAP provisions will be forthcoming. When we are confident and secure in our relationships we will need to hold onto less of our money ‘in case of a rainy day’, as we will be confident that others will look out for us.


Culture

Every church has its own way of doing things. A church’s culture grows organically and takes time to change, and it impacts every area of church life.

• Is your church a risk-taker?
• Is it forgiving?
• Does it see addressing poverty as core to the gospel, or simply an extra if there is time?  

 
The culture of a church is created by every member, but it is especially influenced by the theology of the leadership team. If “culture eats strategy for breakfast”... then the culture of the church is more important than any clever fundraising strategies outlined above.
 

Sustainability

We have become more and more aware that though we only ever live in the present moment, we need to plan for sustainability in all things.  With regards to funding your church’s CAP work, having a long-term plan is key. It is really hard to start a CAP service, so ensuring it is not just a flash in the pan is really important. Sustainability for the long haul will be needed as sadly, though CAP’s aim is to put an end to UK poverty, we do not have an end date in mind!

As you can tell, there are huge overlaps between my new role and my old. If you would like to get in touch with me then please email me on chrisupton@capuk.org

God bless you as you work to God’s glory in your local community.
 


 

The Revd Chris Upton is a Church Funding Officer (England, Northern Ireland and Wales) for Christians Against Poverty. He has contributed to a suite of resources which build on the ideas shared in this article

Chris also works as a pastoral supervisor and as the National Lead Waterways Chaplain

 

Outside the box image | Pixabay

 

---

Do you have a view? Share your thoughts via our letters' page. 

 

---