Parish Share

One of the things that binds our diocese together is the shared commitment to fund our ministry for God’s mission across this area. Each parish volunteers to pay a certain amount into the central diocesan budget, to be used to help fund mission and ministry. The exact amount paid by each parish currently depends on the size of the congregation(s) and the socio-economic status of the area served by the parish, using a system that aims to be fair to all.

Find out more about parish share on our Parish Share Explained page. We’ve also included answers to some of the more common questions we receive about parish share. 

Our diocese is currently reviewing the formula that would determine the exact allocation of parish share payments across our diocese. Although the principle has been established that larger congregations and wealthier parishes might pay more into a central pot than smaller congregations or poorer parishes, the precise way in which we calculate this is yet to be finally determined. A questionnaire is now available here and the views of PCCs and others will be analysed as we consider this carefully.

You may also want to read Bishop Jonathan's theology of parish share (below) and also download our leaflet that explains some of the principles behind parish share.

Accounts and budgets

Our Diocesan Synod agrees a budget each November for the next calendar year. The setting of this budget helps to determine how much each of our parishes is asked to contribute in parish share.

Our annual accounts for each calendar year are available by the summer of the next calendar year. Click here for details of our accounts and budgets from previous years.

Diocesan finance committees

The body which is ultimately responsible for approving our annual budget is our Diocesan Synod, which includes elected representatives from each deanery. But the Bishop’s Council and finance committees are also involved in the process of setting budgets and monitoring our finances. There are two finance committees, each with slightly different roles:

• Audit Committee: its main purpose is to carry out detailed monitoring and evaluation of key financial information on behalf of the Portsmouth Diocesan Board of Finance (PDBF), and the Bishop’s Council; review regular financial reports and indicators; and make recommendations to the PDBF and Bishop's Council on matters of financial strategy, policy and management.
• Diocesan Deaneries Finance Committee: (which includes all deanery treasurers): its main purpose is to carry out detailed monitoring and evaluation of parish share contributions; agree the approach to individual parish share backlogs with the Diocesan Stewardship Advisor; and communicate financial matters to Deanery Finance Committees.