This month Ecclesiastical are running two competitions that your church could enter to win cash to support your ongoing ministry. Here are some details and top tips for how to make the most of your entry.
Movement for Good 2021
This competition is open to all charitable organisations, awarding those who are supporting the most vulnerable in our society. 500 charities will receive £1,000 each in the first round of the competition, with a second round launching later this summer.
Anyone can nominate your church by going to movementforgood.com and answering a few questions. If your church is not a registered charity, make sure that your supporters tick the ‘Registration Exempt’ box on the form.
You can generate a campaign code and create a ‘Nominate Us’ button to go on your website, making it easier for your community to enter. You can also download graphics templates on the Movement for Good website to catch the eye of your supporters.
Spread the word to your church and get nominating! The closing date for nominations is Sunday 13 June.
Good News 2021
Good News 2021 is exclusively for churches, seeking to celebrate what churches have done over this last year to serve their communities in the face of adversity.
The prize is £1,500 for regional winners, plus an additional £6,000 for national winners. To enter, visit the Ecclesiatical website at ecclesiastical.com/churchcomp. The closing date for entries is 17 September 2021.
Top Tips for Sharing your Story
Be inspiring
After a year of such hardship, Ecclesiastical are looking for Good News stories that display the beauty of church communities and the positive impact that we can have as Christians.
Be precise
Think hard about a specific good news story. Maybe you ran Messy Church online; perhaps you established a food bank; maybe you ran IT classes for people in need. Don’t try and explain everything that your church has done in the past year – share good news about something specific that you believe is worth celebrating.
Share something new
Ecclesiastical are looking for creativity, so share what is innovative about the way your church sought to serve the community. Did you move a ministry online? Did you try something completely different to what you have done in the past?
Share some stats
One of the criteria for Good News 2021 is “effectiveness” – a measure of how well your project or ministry has supported the church and wider community. How many people did you reach with your project? Display as best as you can the impact your church’s work has made.
Share some visuals
On the Good News competition webpage, Ecclesiastical ask you to, “Send in a photo or video to include in your story just as you might see on a news site.” Make sure that any recognisable people in the photos that you submit have consented to your sharing the image.
Have you got a good news story? Share them with us by emailing the Giving Team or by tweeting us @SouthwarkCofE.
