6. Grants and Loans

1          Grants and Loans (London) From the Church  Building Fund (PRN 851)

Grants are available for the upkeep, repair, improvement and extension of church buildings, the provision and erection of church and manse buildings of the United Reformed Church.  Grants of up to £5,000 are also available to deal mainly with DDA compliance, toilets and ramp facilities for the disabled but not solely.  It is necessary to obtain advice from the Synod Property Consultant before making an application to the GLG.  All completed application forms must be returned to the Synod Property Consultant for his attention.  They must not be sent directly to London or the Synod Office.

Loans and Grants (Synod) SYN

See Guideline F1 for further information.                                                                         

2          Grants are available for Mission work/projects as well as building maintenance and repairs. 

 3          Grants from the Synod will be awarded in three tranches in March, July and November each year (providing sufficient funds are available). Therefore applications will need to be submitted in good time to meet the deadline dates set by the Synod Grants Advisory Group (SGAG) in order to meet the appropriate Synod Resources Committee meetings.  These dates are available from District Secretaries. Any application submitted late will not be dealt with but held over until the next date.

 4          Once a church has taken the decision to approach the Synod for a grant the following process must be followed:

•  the Church Secretary contacts the Area Secretary to discuss briefly what is proposed and seek guidance on what action is required to obtain sufficient details, estimate of costs, plans and the various approvals, if these are necessary, local planning and in the case of a listed building consultation with the Listed Buildings Advisory Committee, (LBAC);
•  the Church Secretary will obtain a grant application form from the Area Secretary or from the Convener of the Synod Resources Committee should the Area Secretary be unavailable long-term; 
• the Church Secretary completes the application form as required, taking care to submit all papers, estimates, plans and consents.  The form and all documents must be forwarded to the Area Secretary for submission to the District Council for their consideration and approval; 
• the application by the church must carry the endorsement of the District Council or the Appointed Body (i.e. those appointed by the Council to deal with such applications on their behalf) and signed by the Area Secretary. 
• the completed documentation is then forwarded to the Convener of the Synod Resources Committee who will be responsible for collating all applications which will be copied and sent to the SGAG members for their consideration; 
• once the SGAG has completed its work, the applications will be returned to the Convener of the Synod resources Committee who will ensure the applications are dealt with at the appropriate meeting of the SRC in March, July and November; 
• the results of the applications will in the first instance be notified to Church Secretaries by the Area Secretary and later confirmed in writing by the Convener of the SRC to the church;

5          All grant applications and supplementary papers must be submitted to the Convener of the Resources Committee so they can be sent to the SGAG members to meet the deadline dates.  These dates are available from District Secretaries.

 6          The closing dates apply to grant applications that have received District Council approval, without which applications cannot be processed.

March 08

The United Reformed Church

North Western Synod

Application form for a Grant and/or a Loan  #

(# please delete that which is not applicable)

Please complete this form and submit it to the Area Secretary for consideration by the appropriate area committee, before its submission to the Synod Resources Committee. Please add additional details on separate sheets if necessary. **

 Church name……………………………………………………………………………………………

 Church number……………                                        No. of Members in Church… ……………

 Name of the Church Contact Person…………………………………………………………………

 Postal address………………………………………………………………………………………….

 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 Telephone number…………………………………..…………………….…………………………

E-mail address…………………………………………………………………………………………..

 Date of the application……………………………………………………………………………..

 Project title            ……………………………………………………………………………………..

 Project start date……………………………………………………………………………………….

 Brief description of the project **

What are the main reasons for undertaking the project?

Who will benefit most from the project?

A         Is there a local Council of Churches   ……………………………..

 B         If so are you a member of it?    …………………………………….

 C         List of Other local Churches within two miles of all denominations. Also their size and your Churches relationships with these communities.

D         List of grant applications made to other organisations for this project plus amounts requested and expected date of outcome.

E          List of Grants obtained by the Church from other organisations over the last four years.

How will the Church/Community benefit from the proposed project?

Who will carry out the work?

Finance details:

 Total cost of the project including VAT (if applicable).     £………………

Also show a breakdown of the costs. **

 Church contribution to the project                                                 £………………

 Contribution from other partner(s) in an LEP **                  £………………

 Other contributions – promised or offered  **                        £………………

 Contribution from the’ URC HQ Grants’                                      £………………

 Amount of grant requested from the Synod                            £………………

 Amount of loan requested from the Synod                              £………………

 Gross income for the previous year                                              £………………

 Total annual church expenditure                                                 £………………

 Please submit copies of the last 3 years’ accounts including the latest balance sheet.  Please give details of any restricted or endowed funds included in the accounts, and any other material information which will help the SGAG and SRC to understand the financial status of your church.

 Please note:  The church accounts should include investments and cash balances held by the Synod Trust on your behalf and any income arising from them. The same information is required about investments and cash balances held elsewhere in the name of the church. 

 Please submit a copy of any plans for the project

 Give details of any Professional advice received and

include the cost of all professional fees**                                      £…………… 

 Please note – If the project is a large one, someone from the Synod Resources Committee may be appointed to liaise and work with the local church.

 Date the application submitted to the Area Secretary………………………………

 March 08

Comments and recommendation by the person/Group responsible for approving such applications or the Area Secretary.

Does the Area support the application                  Yes or No.

Please state the reasons for the decision.

Signed on behalf of the Area by………………………………………………………….

Date……………………………………..

Date submitted to the Synod Treasurer…………………………………………………………..