FRIENDS' GROUPS

When you think of where you live what do you think of? Of all the things you picture in your mind buildings will feature strongly and your local places of worship may form part of that. This will be the same for many people who live in your area whether they are part of your congregation or not.

Historic buildings need a great deal of care and maintenance and much of the work falls on a small number of dedicated volunteers. A Friends’ Group gives the wider community a formal way in which they can support the conservation of their local historic place of worship.  Many people have significant goodwill for historic buildings.  A Friends' Group can attract support from those interested in heritage and architecture or those with a connection to the building who are unable to worship there.

There is so much that people can offer from attracting new funding or volunteering their time. There is plenty that can be done and the possibilities are only limited by the energy and imagination of those involved. Friends' Groups can help organise a concert, arrange a series of fund raising events like scrabble nights, quiz nights, use members’ professional skills to support funding applications, promote a series of talks or even arrange temporary art exhibitions. There are so many skills that can be utilised and so many skills that exist in the communities that live around historic places of worship.

You will only need to register with the Charity Commission if your annual income exceeds £5000. If you have an annual income less than £5000 you may apply directly to HMRC for an HMRC Charity Number and qualify for a range of tax exemptions and reliefs. In Scotland and Northern Ireland the legislation is slightly different with no £5000 threshold. In both of those countries you will need to register as a charity and further information is available on the websites of the relevant bodies. There is further advice on this matter in our Register as a Charity section.