Enabling The Mission: Week Two
This week, Frank McKenna, a member of our Parish Finance Committee, reflects on how our financial giving supports the life and mission of St Mary’s. He shares the work made possible by parishioners’ generosity, the challenges ahead and an invitation to review our giving according to our means.
Explore the Week Two booklet
Read the booklet below at your own pace. As you explore, you might like to consider:
How might I support the mission of our parish through my giving, within what I can afford?
Frank McKenna Talk - 11th October 2026
Enabling the Mission - Week Two
St Mary’s Parish, Poole
Good morning, everyone, I’m Frank McKenna and I am a member of the Parish Finance Committee. Last week – in this sequence of four weeks spending time discussing the theme “Enabling the Mission” – we reviewed our scriptural and catechism obligations to support our church, to sustain it and keep it in good order for the glory of God. A booklet was distributed as a guide to help us think about how we might contribute to the Mission of this parish and the wider Church and what else we might do.
This week’s booklet – which will be distributed after Mass – is compiled by the Parish Finance Committee – and sets out information about our income and provides some extraordinary examples of the vital work done with this income over recent years. Installing new boilers last year after the old system packed up. (Who can forget the hot blowers poking through the window at the back there.) This was unavoidable, essential work but cost £52,800. Other essential work was the replacement of the main area of the church roof at a cost of £189,600.
This has happened because of the generosity of all parishioners and so thank you for this…
and for your thoughtful consideration of what is still needed……
Today’s booklet provides financial information – a chart, a graph and a table – that perhaps many of you have not seen before or had the chance to review. The fundamental point made by this frank, information presentation is that this year’s deficit – a shortfall between income and expenditure – was over £21,000 and that annual deficits are the trend. Of course, massive and urgent property costs have not helped in the past three years, but I would like to share with you that whilst inflation was 7% during the period, offertory giving has risen by only 1.5%. Further, giving and the tax reclaimed on some of it – Gift Aid – accounts for only 60% of overall income, the rest comes from other sources. For instance, we are especially blessed at St Mary’s by a substantial legacy from the Townsend family that remains an important element in our finances – so, the roof renewal funding was provided by the incredibly
generous contributions from parishioners and the support from the Townsend family fund.
Besides these costly building renewals, the parish must pay its running cost – electricity, gas, supplies for the liturgy, communications and so on – and take care of our clergy. But it must also plan to renew other parts of the church premises. So, there are aspirations that the hall kitchen could be upgraded to meet the rising number of people using it and their needs for catering and possible hiring – a cost of up to £50,000. And at some point, the car park will need redesigning and relaying – probably another £50,000.
In explaining all of this in today’s booklet, the parish finance committee hope that you see the challenge facing all of us to close the current difference between income and expenditure. And we do so at this time – in this process of Enabling the Mission -because we believe we are stewards of this church where we worship, never taking more from it than we put back and, ideally, leaving it in better shape than we found it, as we pass it to our successors in faith.
And so our appeal is simply for everyone to review their giving – What they habitually give through the Sunday collection, by the card readers in church or by bank standing order – but never giving more than we can afford but asking ourselves whether we are giving enough from what we can afford.
And two more ideas:
If you are not giving by standing order – a fixed monthly amount – please consider doing so – is very helpful in the parish’s planning and budgeting
And if you are paying by standing order, please consider signing up for Gift Aid. Through this scheme, the parish claimed over £16,000 last year.
These are explained further in the booklet.
I hope you will read the booklet with an open mind and heart and respond as you are able. With your help we will keep this church open, safe and holy. It is, after all, our second home.
Thank you for listening