Founded on Christian principles, The Parish Trust is committed to transforming lives and communities through its various charitable initiatives. The organisation aims to create positive change by addressing social issues, providing support, and empowering individuals to reach their full potential. With a strong emphasis on collaboration and faith-driven action, The Parish Trust seeks to bring faith, hope, and love to those in need.

Why Join as a Trustee?

1. Make a Meaningful Difference: As a trustee, you will play a pivotal role in shaping and implementing the organisation’s strategic direction. Your contributions will directly impact the lives of individuals and communities, enabling positive change in areas such as poverty alleviation, education, healthcare, community, and more.
2. Utilise and Enhance Your Expertise: The Parish Trust values the diverse skill set and experience each trustee brings to the table. Whether you have a background in legal matters, PR, networking, or strategy, your knowledge will be leveraged to drive the organisation’s growth and improve its impact. This is an excellent opportunity to apply your expertise in a meaningful way.
3. Professional and Personal Development: Serving as a trustee at The Parish Trust provides a valuable platform for personal and professional growth. Engaging with like-minded individuals, participating in strategic decision-making, and gaining insights into the intricacies of managing a charitable organisation can broaden your horizons and enhance your leadership skills.
4. Networking and Collaboration: The Parish Trust actively fosters connections and partnerships within the Christian community and beyond. As a trustee, you will have the opportunity to engage with influential individuals, organisations, and stakeholders who share your commitment to making a difference. This network can open doors to new opportunities and collaborations, extending the reach and impact of The Parish Trust.
5. Spiritual Fulfillment: The Parish Trust’s Christian foundation ensures that the work carried out is driven by faith, love, and compassion. By aligning your beliefs and values with your charitable efforts, you will experience a deep sense of fulfillment and purpose in serving those in need and being a positive force in the world.

How to Apply

If you feel called to contribute to The Parish Trust’s mission and possess the desired expertise, we encourage you to apply for the trustee positions. To access the job description and submit your application, please visit the following link: The Parish Trust Trustee Information & Expression of Interest Form

Conclusion

Joining The Parish Trust as a trustee is an incredible opportunity to make a lasting impact, contribute your skills and expertise, and grow both personally and professionally. As the organisation enters a new phase of growth and opportunity, it seeks passionate individuals with legal, PR, networking, or strategic backgrounds who share a common Christian faith. By becoming a trustee, you will play a vital role in shaping the future of The Parish Trust and empowering individuals and communities to thrive and live life in all its fulness.

Apply today and embark on a fulfilling journey with The Parish Trust. Together, we can bring hope, love, and positive change to those who need it most.

The Parish Trust’s accounting period runs from January 1st until December 31st each year, and as such, the charity reports on the previous calendar year.

You can read the report below, or look at the charity overview directly on the Charity Commission Website by clicking here.

In 2020, our income was made up of the following…

• Grant Funding (all income described as a grant, no matter its value) 80%
• Donations from individuals, companies, and other organisations 15%
• Other income (including sales, service charges, and fees) 5%

This made up a figure of just over £190,000. It seems like a lot of money, but really, The Parish Trust runs on a budget. We try to be savvy in the way we use our funds and we carefully research costings before we purchase things. Moreover, £190,000 for a year’s work actually represents good value for money.

In 2020, the main bulk of our work was helping people in need through COVID-19 by offering them food parcels, prescription delivery services, and pastoral care over the telephone. In total, we helped 9222 people. If we do some really basic maths and divide our total income by the number of people we helped through the CARE Project, it comes out at £20.69.

In other words, it cost us £20.69 for every person we helped.

Of course, this is a very simplistic way of looking at things, and The Parish Trust not only helped people in 2020 through the CARE Project, but we also provided training, opportunities for young people, volunteer opportunities, employment, and other services such as Christmas carol singing, networking, and support systems through our various referral partners.

But all this comes at a cost. In order to do our work there are statutory things that have to be in place in order for us to function. Here’s just some of the things we have to think about and cover the costs for on a daily basis:

• Utility bills (Gas, Electric, Water, Telephone, Broadband)
• Fuel
• Insurance (Charity insurance, employer liability, vehicle insurance, volunteer insurance)
• License fees for our software packages
• Our Website fees
• Photocopier bills
• Stationery
• Staffing Costs
• Transaction fees for online payments and donations, Caffi Caredig purchases
• Food when we’re low on ambient food donations
• Project development
• Safeguarding (DBS checks)
• Staff and Volunteer Training
• Equipment
• Depreciation (of vehicles and IT equipment etc)
• Maintenance (of building, MOT/Servicing of vehicles)
• Accounts Examiner fees

… and lots more!

So where does the opening question come from – Beans or a Quid?

Well, one of our main projects as a charity is the CARE Project which has become one of Caerphilly County Borough’s largest food banks. Food banks, whilst being a sad necessity, are well supported by the general public in the form of food donations. We’re always grateful for ambient food donations here, and it’s a great way of involving yourself in charitable work and ensuring that you’re directly helping those in need.

But… supporting a charity financially (and regularly) can give some added benefits. So let’s compare some beans and a quid.

Whilst researching for this blog post, I found out that Sainsbury’s do a 4 pack of baked beans for £1. Not bad. There are other options available, but for the sake of my demonstration, £1 is a nice round number to work with!

Let’s say that Mrs. Jones went on her weekly shop and bought a 4 pack of baked beans for £1. She could donate this 4 pack of baked beans to us, and those beans would help to feed a family for one week. The benefit of Mrs. Jones doing this is that she has control over how the charity utilises her gift, and she knows that the beans she buys will go directly to a person/family in need.

Looking at it another way though, she could save the trip of coming down to the charity to drop the beans off and donate the £1 directly to the charity instead.

What would be the benefit(s) of this?

Well, firstly, it means that the charity will have a better idea of what funds it is likely to receive from the General Public, especially if Mrs. Jones decides to donate £1 regularly through online giving.

Secondly, as Mrs. Jones has a job and she pays tax, she is eligible to give the charity an extra 25% on top of whatever she donates at no cost to her through GiftAid. This is where the Government pledge to give an extra 25p for every pound donated by a tax-paying citizen. In other words, by donating £1 directly to the charity, Mrs. Jones would, in effect, be donating 5 tins of beans rather than 4.

Thirdly, by donating £1 to the charity rather than the beans, Mrs. Jones is giving the charity flexibility to put funds where it is needed. There’s no point in tonnes of beans sitting in our food hub if there isn’t enough money to pay our Community Worker to dedicate a full time job to ensuring the smooth running of the food hub (as well as other projects we run) which will ensure volunteers are on hand to collect and sort the beans, and then pack them into a food parcel which our volunteer delivery drivers will deliver to the family who have requested help from us.

Fourthly, Mrs. Jones’ financial support shows to the Charity Commission, grant funders, and the public that people trust and support the charity enough to trust them with financial gifts. This means that the charity is more likely to receive grant funding as grant funders look favourably on charities that are financially supported by a large group of stakeholders. This in turn secures the charity’s future and enables it to develop its work.

In conclusion then, beans or a quid?

Well, that depends on you, dear reader! There are benefits to either option, but if you’re able to, a regular financial donation to the work of The Parish Trust will enable us to secure the future of the charity and grow it so that we can continue to make a difference. Beans are great and we never say no to food donations, but financial donations have added benefits that beans (or any other food donation), tasty though they may be, cannot provide.

If you’d like to make a regular financial donation, then all you need to do is click the “Donate” button at the top of our website and follow the instructions. Alternatively you can contact us for other ways to give financially.

If you’d rather donate food, you can do so by dropping it in our bin at The Parish Trust offices between 9am and 5pm Monday-Friday, or you can look out for our CARE Collections where volunteers collect food donations from your doorstep.

Whatever you do, you’ll be helping us make a difference in the lives of many, and for that, we’re truly grateful.