Welcome to the Christmas & New Year 2000/2001 On Line Edition of

St George's News

Waterlooville's Parish Magazine

THE TRAIL OF THE PINK ENVELOPE

You will see that a box of pink envelopes has appeared on the table by the collection plate. They are in fact the long awaited Gift Aid envelopes and are very similar to our green planned giving envelopes, apart from the information which needs to be filled in on the front. (The pink envelopes are in addition to and not instead of the green ones.)

The pink envelopes are intended for the use of casual visitors to St George's who wish to contribute to collections, special appeals (such as the St George's Day gifts), additional donations from members of the congregation and even the Eucharistic Gift donation, provided the individuals concerned are tax payers and pay sufficient tax to cover the tax the church can reclaim on those donations during each tax year. The current rate is 28p for every £1 given and together with the planned giving scheme we expect to recover in excess of £4,000 during a 12 month period, vital funding for us here at St George's.

But who is a taxpayer I hear some of you ask? Well tax is not only paid on earned income but also on savings, building society accounts, pensions, investments and capital gains. Remember to keep a personal record of the donations you make in order to complete any annual tax return.

So having discovered you do pay tax after all please see our Honorary Recorder John Millard to amend any planned giving contributions for inclusion under the Gift Aid provisions by just completing a simple form - no legally binding covenants to sign any more - and increase your giving by 28% at no cost to you.

So when tax paying friends or visitors come to church encourage them to place their donation in a completed pink envelope on the collection plate. When giving Eucharistic Gift donations and details to the vicar, if you are a taxpayer complete a pink envelope as well. Any pink envelopes will find their way to the treasurer to that your donations can be accounted for in the cash book in the normal way, and then subsequently scheduled with all the relevant information required by the Inland Revenue for tax reclaim purposes. The envelopes are retained as proof for the taxman in support of our claim and for audit purposes - the trail of the pink envelope!

Linda Wainwright

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page last updated 1 DECEMBER 2000