Getting started with the Giving module

Introduction to the Giving module

Welcome to the Giving module. This module will help you manage the donations you receive for your various funds and the givers who gave them. For UK customers, the module supports Gift Aid - allowing you to produce and submit claims to HMRC - and tax deductibility in other regions where that applies. In this module, you can send statements of donations, manage pledges and use a wide range of financial reports. The Giving module also includes our online giving system, Donate, and our contactless giving solution, Tap to Donate.

We encourage you to read this article in full to familiarise yourself with the module's key features and customisation options, as well as some of the basic concepts and terminology you'll encounter in it and in our related support articles and training videos.

Giving module features at a glance

• Add your various unrestricted, restricted and designated funds against which donations are recorded
• Easily add new givers or import your existing giver data from another system
• Giver profile pages with everything in one clear view
• For UK customers, manage Gift Aid declarations, handle eligible donations under the Gift Aid Small Donation Scheme, and produce and submit Gift Aid claims to HMRC. Support for tax-deductible funds and donations in other regions such as North America and Australia.
• Add donations individually or in batches (such as a Sunday offering), or import donations from a bank statement or CSV file
• Use the Donate online giving platform to collect one-off and recurring donations by card and bank payments
• Offer prospective givers a contactless donation experience at your various in-person gatherings and events using Tap to Donate. Use the app on a device at a static giving kiosk or circulate the device during an offering.
• Pledge management functionality
• Enable givers to view their giving history, make an online donation, and manage pledges and Gift Aid declarations through the member-facing My ChurchSuite

Next Steps

Terminology

Here's a list of key terms you'll encounter in the Giving module and the related support articles and training videos for this module:

• Funds distinguish the various causes or purposes that you collect donations for. Funds might be unrestricted, restricted or designated.
• Givers are people who make financial donations to your church or organisation. Each giver has its own profile in the Giving module, enabling you to ringfence user access to confidential giver-related information. Giver profiles can be linked to contact profiles in the Address Book or remain unlinked, e.g. for those who give but who are not in your Address Book.
• Pledges are non-binding financial promises or commitments made by a giver. They help churches project future income and produce budgets, and givers are held gently accountable and can track their pledge progress.
• Donate is our online giving system, enabling prospective givers to make one-off and recurring card or bank donations (transaction fees apply).
• Tap to Donate is our contactless giving solution. It enables prospective givers to choose a preset amount or enter a custom amount and tap their card to pay (transaction fees apply).
• My ChurchSuite is a member-facing system. Givers whose giver profile is linked to their Address Book contact profile can be invited to access My ChurchSuite, where they can view their giving history, make an online donation, and manage their pledges and Gift Aid declarations.

Got a question?

You’ll find the answers to most questions in our support articles - they're all available through the Support menu located in the top-right corner of each page in ChurchSuite. Select Get help and search by topic, phrase or keyword. You can also access the Support Article library on our website. If you still can't find something you're looking for, click to contact one of the ChurchSuite team - we’re happy to help!