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Thank you for supporting us
Sharing what we have for the life of Northstowe and beyond
Sharing what we have for the life of Northstowe and beyond
Northstowe Church Network is sustained by the generosity of people who pray, volunteer, share their skills and give financially.
Some give because this is their church community. Others value what the Network contributes to Northstowe or want to help the vision for the Lakes Centre & Chapel by the Lake become a reality.
However you support us, thank you.
Three ways to support our shared life
Three ways to support our shared life
Sustain our everyday life
Sustain our everyday life
Help sustain our communities, ministry, pastoral care, work with children and families, community partnerships and the ordinary costs that make all of this possible.
Help build for the future
Help build for the future
Support the development of a permanent place of prayer, hospitality and community life beside Bug Hunter Waters.
Share your time and skills
Share your time and skills
So much is made possible by volunteers: welcoming, making food, praying, leading, listening, creating, organising and offering professional expertise.
Give to the Northstowe Church Network
Give to the Northstowe Church Network
Financial gifts through our general giving routes support the shared life and charitable work of the Northstowe Church Network.
+ What does your local giving enable?
+ What does your local giving enable?
The Northstowe Church Network received generous support from the wider Church during its earliest years. As both the town and the church grow, local giving increasingly needs to sustain our ordinary life and ministry here in Northstowe, while also enabling us to play our part in the wider costs of ministry, mission and support shared across the churches to which we belong.
Your gifts help support:
🙏 Prayer, worship and ministry
🙏 Prayer, worship and ministry
Our three communities of hope, Christian festivals, Communion, prayer resources, pastoral care, and the costs of sustaining ordained and lay ministry. Some of these costs are met directly by the Network. Others are supported through the wider churches to which we belong, so we contribute our share through Ministry Share and ecumenical contributions.
🌱 Children, young people and families
🌱 Children, young people and families
Little Explorers, Pathfinder Church, Church Club, our Growing Faith work with The Pathfinder School and our contribution to wider youth provision in Northstowe.
🏡 Hospitality and community life
🏡 Hospitality and community life
Venue hire, food, equipment, creative resources, communications and the practical costs of creating welcoming and accessible spaces.
🤝 Partnership and service
🤝 Partnership and service
Work alongside schools, charities, community organisations, civic bodies and other faith communities for the flourishing of Northstowe.
🧾 The less visible necessities
🧾 The less visible necessities
Insurance, safeguarding, training, administration, technology, governance and the other costs involved in running a responsible local charity.
General donations enable the trustees to respond to changing needs and use funds where they can make the greatest difference.
+ What are Ministry Share and Ecumenical Contributions?
+ What are Ministry Share and Ecumenical Contributions?
Northstowe Church Network belongs within three wider church families: the Church of England, the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the United Reformed Church. We receive ministry, oversight, safeguarding support, advice, training and encouragement through these relationships, and our annual budget includes contributions towards the wider life we share with them.
Ministry Share
Ministry Share
Our Church of England contribution is called Ministry Share. While our Minister is an Anglican (and so paid by the Diocese), this is our largest denominational payment. Ministry Share is not a payment made directly to our minister, nor is it simply a charge for Sunday services. It contributes towards the wider cost of providing ordained ministry and the diocesan support that surrounds it, including safeguarding, advice and pastoral support.
The Diocese of Ely and the wider Church have provided substantial help during Northstowe’s early years. We are meeting our agreed share of the currently subsidised cost of our lead minister, and expect local giving gradually to carry more of that cost as the town and church grow.
Sharing in three wider traditions
Sharing in three wider traditions
Because we are one local ecumenical church rather than solely an Anglican parish, our budget also includes agreed annual contributions connected with our Baptist and United Reformed Church relationships.
These recognise that we receive support, oversight and the gifts of all three traditions. They also allow us to contribute to Christian ministry and mission beyond Northstowe, rather than benefiting from the wider churches without sharing in their common life.
The amounts are agreed through our annual budgeting process and reported transparently in our published accounts.
+ Regular giving
+ Regular giving
Regular giving gives us a dependable foundation and helps the trustees plan responsibly.
We recommend giving through the Parish Giving Scheme, which offers a secure way to make regular gifts by Direct Debit. You remain in control of your gift and can change or stop it when needed.
You can choose to give monthly, quarterly or annually and add Gift Aid where you are eligible.
The Parish Giving Scheme currently supports monthly, quarterly and annual Direct Debits, as well as one-off card and digital-wallet gifts.
+ One-off gifts
+ One-off gifts
One-off gifts are equally valuable.
You might give to mark a special occasion, respond to something happening in the life of the Network, or simply contribute when your circumstances allow.
You can also give by bank transfer, cheque or cash. Please contact our Treasurer for the appropriate details and let us know if your gift is intended for a particular purpose.
+ No pressure
+ No pressure
Within Christian faith, stewardship means recognising that our money, possessions, time, abilities and the world itself are gifts entrusted to us.
Giving is therefore part of Christian discipleship — but it is not a fee for belonging.
People’s financial circumstances are very different. Some can give regularly; some occasionally; some are unable to give money at all. Some contribute many hours of time or bring particular skills. Many people’s capacity also changes from one season of life to another.
You will never be asked to pay in order to belong, worship with us, receive pastoral care or take part in the life of the Network.
We simply invite those who consider the Network their church to reflect prayerfully on what generosity might look like for them at this point in their lives.
+ Gift Aid
+ Gift Aid
If you are an eligible UK taxpayer, Gift Aid allows us to claim an additional 25p for every £1 you donate, without costing you anything extra.
For example, a gift of £20 can become £25.
You will need to complete a Gift Aid declaration and must have paid enough UK Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax to cover the Gift Aid claimed on all your charitable donations.
Our online giving routes allow you to complete the declaration as part of the process. For gifts made by other methods, please ask our Treasurer for a Gift Aid form.
[Contact the Treasurer about Gift Aid →]
HMRC confirms that a charity may claim 25p for every £1 donated where the donor meets the conditions and has made a valid declaration
We also give beyond Northstowe
We also give beyond Northstowe
Generosity does not stop with our own activities. There are needs that we cannot respond to directly ourselves, so part of our shared giving supports other organisations working locally, nationally and internationally.
Rather than spreading small amounts across many causes, we try to develop meaningful relationships with a smaller number of mission partners. That may include:
giving financially;
praying for their work;
listening to updates;
learning from their experience;
and inviting them to help us understand the issues they address.
Our recent partnerships have included work challenging modern slavery, supporting people experiencing homelessness and investing in the lives of young people. The organisations we support may change as partnerships develop and needs emerge.
Support the Lakes Centre and Chapel By The Lake
Support the Lakes Centre and Chapel By The Lake
The award of Northstowe’s first Faith and Community Land site opens an extraordinary opportunity: to create a permanent lakeside place of prayer, hospitality, reflection, wellbeing, youth work and shared community life.
The project includes the Chapel by the Lake, flexible community spaces, a café and exhibition area, an Islamic Prayer and Education Room, meeting spaces and a landscape designed for gathering and reflection.
The lease of the land itself is only the beginning. The Northstowe Church Network will need to raise substantial funds for design, professional fees, planning, construction and the work required to bring the site into life.
Gifts towards the building project are accounted for separately from donations supporting our ordinary life and ministry.
This project is being developed alongside Northstowe Muslims, Turtle Dove Cambridge CIC and a wider group of professional and community collaborators.
Other ways to support our shared life
Other ways to support our shared life
Leave a gift in your will
Leave a gift in your will
A gift in your will can help sustain Christian and community life in Northstowe for future generations.
Because wills and estates are personal legal documents, we recommend speaking with a solicitor or suitably qualified adviser. Our Treasurer can provide the charity’s registered details and discuss whether you would like your gift to support the Network’s general purposes or a particular area of work.
Support us while shopping
Support us while shopping
You may also be able to generate donations through our Easyfundraising page when shopping online with participating retailers, without adding to the cost of your purchase.
Share professional skills
Share professional skills
The growing life of the Network and the Chapel by the Lake project draw on many kinds of expertise.
People have already helped with architecture, planning, finance, charity governance, law, fundraising, communications, project management, community engagement, design and practical work.
Offering a few hours of professional advice can sometimes make an enormous difference.
[Use our Contact Form to offer skills or expertise →]
Give your time
Give your time
The Network depends on people who welcome, prepare food, set up rooms, lead prayer, tell stories, make music, support children, listen, organise, communicate and help with all the jobs that others may never see.
Some roles are occasional. Others involve joining a regular team.
Let's have a chat!
Responsible and transparent fundraising
Responsible and transparent fundraising
Northstowe Church Network is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation and registered charity:
Northstowe Church Network
Registered charity number 1206577
Our trustees are responsible for ensuring that donations are managed carefully and used to further the charity’s purposes. Our reporting to the Charity Commission is currently up to date, and our annual report and accounts are publicly available.
We are also registered with the Fundraising Regulator and are committed to fundraising that is legal, open, honest and respectful.
[Read our latest Annual Report and Accounts →]
[View our Charity Commission entry →]
[Contact the Treasurer →]
Questions about giving, Gift Aid or how donations are used are always welcome.
Thank you
Thank you
Every gathering, conversation, prayer, meal, school partnership and act of service is made possible by people choosing to share what they have.
Some gifts are financial. Others are measured in time, welcome, creativity, prayer, professional knowledge or countless cups of tea.
Together, they help communities of hope grow and enable the Northstowe Church Network to keep praying, exploring and sharing for the life of this town.
We are grateful for the support of the Benefact Trust, alongside the generosity of individuals, churches and organisations who help sustain and develop our work in Northstowe.
Thank you for being part of it.
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