14/03/2025
Following the success of the Digital Giving Rollout Project in English parishes, Juliet Evans, Fundraising Adviser for the Diocese in Europe, set about piloting contactless card reader devices on the continent to see if they would work in churches across Europe.
“The Diocese in Europe is the largest of the 42 dioceses in the Church of England with over 250 congregations in more than 30 countries across continental Europe, Turkey, Morocco and Russia,” explains Juliet. “Several of our ‘chaplaincies’ – which are the equivalent of a parish community in England - had already embraced simple chip & pin SumUp card reader devices, but we wanted to test if larger contactless devices using the Give A Little app would also work, as this would give a far better and more engaging giving experience.
“We chose to partner with Payaz as they are based in Northern Ireland and could therefore ensure a smooth delivery process in the post-Brexit era. We piloted the technology and devices with four churches and the initial results were extremely encouraging.”
“The churchwardens are impressed how easy it is to operate, and the congregation was impressed by the look and speed of the machine. One of the younger ones told me she never carried cash, so felt very much at home with the machine.” All Saints Milan, Italy
The Diocese in Europe formally joined the Digital Giving Rollout Project in Spring last year and a total of 49 churches across the length and breadth of the diocese – from Oslo to Malta and from Lisbon to Bucharest - have now received devices.
The impact of the project is depicted in the infographic above.
“It’s been a great project to be part of,” comments Juliet. “Increasingly we are moving towards being cashless societies, so the ability to accept digital donations (via contactless and online giving) is going to be key for many churches in the years to come. It’s early days, but many of our chaplaincies here are already indicating that the digital giving is new and additional income, rather than simply replacing another method of giving, such as cash. We have a lot of visitors to our churches, particularly during the summer months, so the eye-catching devices are a really welcome addition.”
“Moving forwards, we are aiming to offer more card reader devices to other chaplaincies, thanks to additional funding from our diocese.”