Contactless Giving at St Luke’s – TAP TO DONATE
Most donations to St Luke’s come from our regular church members through our Planned Giving Scheme by envelope or standing order. Regular giving is particularly helpful for budgeting purposes and if this is how you give to St Luke’s, please continue to donate in this way. However, we have now installed our first contactless giving device at the back of the church allowing anyone to give by card etc. rather than by cash.
What is contactless giving?
- Contactless giving refers to donations made through a contactless donation device using either a bank or credit card, or a mobile device through Apple Pay or Google Pay etc.
Why do we need contactless giving?
- Contactless giving is particularly well-suited to receiving donations from one-off or occasional visitors, such as those attending events such as weddings, baptisms, funerals or carol services, or even tourists. The average contactless donation is typically three times higher than the average cash donation, and with fewer people carrying cash now many churches benefit from having a contactless giving mechanism.
- Withdrawals of cash from banks are down 60% since before the pandemic. With contactless payments becoming the norm, it has never been more critical to accept cashless donations.
Effortless admin
- With a traditional collection box, cash needs to be constantly counted. In comparison, contactless fundraising requires zero cash handling. Donations are processed by a third party who takes a small percentage (1.29%) of each donation and transfers the balance directly into our bank account on a weekly basis. We also receive reports which simplify the process of claiming Gift Aid where a donor has identified as eligible for Gift Aid at the time of payment.
- Cash donations up to £30 which are not supported by a valid Gift Aid certificate qualify for 25% tax relief under the Government’s Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS). Contactless payments of up to £30 also qualify under this scheme.
TAP TO DONATE
- Our new contactless card reader is available for anyone who may previously have given cash but finds contactless giving more convenient. Why not try it out?
- Needless to say, we continue to welcome donations by any means!