Diocese of London

DIOCESE OF LONDON

BUDGET FORM FOR SINGLE ORDINANDS

2006/2007

Name:
Address at College:
Telephone Number: / Mobile:
Email:
Theological College:
Director of Ordinands:
Episcopal Area:
Home Address:
(if you have not already
moved to college)
Home Tel. Number:
Signature: / Date:

When completed this from should be sent to Elaine Saunders at London Diocesan House, 36 Causton Street, London, SW1P 4AU as soon as possible and no later than 5th August, with a copy to your Director of Ordinands.

Please let the Diocese know if there are any changes in income (up or down) to the income details given.

EXPENDITURE for the academic year 2006/2007
Is this for 10 months (final year) or for 12 months?
10 / / / 12
The academic year is taken from 1st September
(Excluding placements and travel to/form college
Vacation Accommodation
Christmas
Vacation / Easter Vacation / Long Vacation / TOTAL
weeks / weeks / weeks
RENT of college accommodation
(Note 1) / £ / £ / £ / £
RENT of other accommodation / £ / £ / £ / £
OR CONTRIBUTION to parents / £ / £ / £ / £
(If living at home)
HEAT and LIGHT / £ / £ / £ / £
(If not included in rent)
OWN PROPERTY (if living in own Property - use net figure from enclosed property form) / £
Personal Expenditure
FOOD during vacation(Note 2) / £ / £ / £ / £
CLOTHING and FOOTWARE £363 (£303 if in final year) / £
NATIONAL INSURANCE £394 (£328 if in final year) / £
OTHER EXPENDITURE £2,342 (£1,951 if in final year)
Holiday, entertainment, books, car, etc. / £
TOTAL EXPENDITURE / £
NOTES
1.Colleges are usually able to provide accommodation for use by single students during vacations. Levels of rent vary between colleges and may also vary between Christmas, Easter and Summer vacations. If you are planning to remain in college during the vacations, check the amount you will need to pay before completing this form.
2. A student will typically require approximately £32.30p per week with respect to food expenses. Where living with parents, it will need to be established whether contribution towards food and other expenses will be expected by parents.
INCOME for the academic year 2006/2007
Is this for 10 months (final year) or for 12 months?
10 / / / 12
(Excluding placement allowances and Ministry Division Travel Allowance
Ministry Division: / Personal Allowance / £
Short Vacation Allowance / £
Long Vacation AllowanceNote 1 / £
(if applicable re: Summer 2007 - £392)
T.A.P (Train a Priest) / £
TOTAL / £
LEA HE GRANT (if eligible for LEA AWARD) / £
EMPLOYMENT (3/4 of bet income over 945) / £
INTERESR from savings and investments / £
PENSION / £
(3/4 of net income over £1,940) (Please attach details)
OTHER GRANTS / £
(charities/donations from parish/family/friends – less 1st £400)
ANY OTHER INCOME (please specify) / £
Note 2 / TOTAL / £
TOTAL INCOME / £
DIOCESAN GRANT leave blank, maximum grant £1,220 / £
TOTAL OVERALL INCOME / £
NOTES
1. The Ministry Division long vacation allowance should be included only when students will enter
Subsequent academic year of training.
2. Allowance made by colleges with respect to placement periods and the Ministry Division travel covering journeys to and from college should not be included as income in the form
London Diocese
Property Income and Expenditure Declaration
This form is also for use by ordinands who living in their own property)
Name
Address of property
Is the property let?/anticipated date of letting?
Estimated Income (for 10/12 month period if applicable
Rent for 10/12 months / (@ £ / per month) / £
Less depreciation at 10% / £
TOTAL / £
Estimated Income (for 10/12 month period if applicable
Anticipated tax / £
(if not known please notify the Diocese when you have a figure)
Ground rent for the year if applicable / £
Water rates
(if payable by owner) / (@ £ / per month) / £
Service charge / (@ £ / per month) / £
Agents fees / (@ £ / per month) / £
Mortgage interest / (@ £ / per month) / £
Mortgage protection (NOT endowment policy) / £
Building insurance / (@ £ / per month) / £
Contents insurance
(If letting furnished property) / (@ £ / per month) / £
Gas check certificate/boiler maintenance for year / £
Any other items (please specify) / £
TOTAL / £
NET INCOME / £
Capital repayments / (@ £ / per month)
Or Endowment Policy cost / (@ £ / per month)
NOTES

• If these figures change (up or down) you must let the Diocese know.
• If repairs are carried out on your property during the year, please let the Diocese have details of the repairs and costs as they may be deductible against the income or, where ordinands are living in their own property, may be regarded as an additional budget item.

DIOCESE OF LONDON

Confirmation of bank details for payment by BACS

Name:
Bank Name:
Bank Address:
Account number:
Sort Code:

STATE BENEFITS

Income Support and Jobseeker’s Allowance

Students in general are no longer eligible to claim Income Support and Jobseeker’s Allowance on their own behalf or on behalf of dependents. There are, however, a small number of exceptions:

i)Where the student's partner is also a student, Income Support can be claimed during the long vacation if the claimant is available for work;

ii)A student who is a lone parent may claim Income Support during the year if responsible for any children aged under 16;

iii)A student who is disabled and qualifies for the Disability Premium may claim Income Support during the year.

To compensate for students' loss of eligibility for these benefits during the long vacation a standard grant of £392 will be paid by the Ministry Division to each student going on to a further year of study in the 2007/2008 academic year. Candidates' partners who register for employment are still eligible to claim Income Support, and possibly additional Jobseeker’s Allowance throughout the year, although in order to be eligible for Income Support a couple's savings should not exceed £8,000. It is recommended that partners do submit a claim where appropriate, for even if no benefit is paid Class 3 National Insurance Contributions may be met.

Child Benefit

Child Benefit is available to all members of the population with children aged under 16 (or under 19 if still at school). The current rate of benefit is £17.45 per week for the first child and £11.70 per week for each subsequent child.

Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit

Child Tax Credit was introduced in April 2003. Married students with children (under 16 or under 19 if still at school) are eligible and should be expected to apply for this budget. Unlike Child Benefit, it is means-tested – but the means test is generous and even couples with a joint income of up to £55,000 p.a. may be eligible to receive a portion of the benefit. It is paid (by the Inland Revenue) direct to "the person who is mainly responsible for caring for the children in the family". It is paid in addition to Child Benefit. Despite the name it does not require one partner to be working and paying tax. Applicants may check their eligibility on-line at and then immediately apply on-line. Alternatively, a claims pack can be ordered by phone (0800 500 222). There is also a Tax Credits helpline – 0845 300 3900.

Working Tax Credit, also introduced in April 2003, replaces Working Families Tax Credit (which, in turn, replaced Family Credit). This may be applicable where one partner works more than 16 hours a week and there are sizeable childcare costs to be met. But couples without children are eligible to apply. The contact details for applications are the same as those for Child Tax Credit above.

Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit

Candidates are no longer able to apply for Housing Benefit with respect to rent but the partners of candidates may still apply to their local council for Housing Benefit and also Council Tax Benefit. To be eligible the couple's savings must not exceed £16,000. If you live in accommodation rented from the college, Housing Benefit may be paid only in respect of the Long Vacation. If you live in privately rented accommodation, Housing Benefit may be paid with respect to the whole year.

Free NHS prescriptions, dental and optical treatment

Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Working Tax Credit all carry the right to free NHS prescriptions and NHS dental and optical treatment, but it is recommended that all candidates and their families apply for reduction of charges whether in receipt of state benefits or not.

DIOCESE OF LONDON

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR ORDINANDS IN RESIDENTIAL TRAINING SOME BASIC PRINCIPLES

“For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it” Luke 14.28

Our Lord’s words concerning Christian discipleship were never truer than as they apply to our particular calling to ordained ministry. The Diocese of London attempts to provide adequate financial support for sponsored ordinands and their families during their training at college. While college fees and some other costs are paid by the Ministry Division*, the diocese has a particular responsibility for paying maintenance grants, where these are necessary. Individual cases will vary but the following general points should be borne in mind.

• The money available to the diocese for the payment of grants is raised in parishes andwe have an obligation to exercise careful stewardship of it;

• Because the diocese has a large number of ordinands in training and limited financial resources we have to keep strictly to the national guidelines agreed by the House of Bishops;

• The diocese guarantees maintenance support at the level agreed in the national guidelines**;

• All diocesan grants are means tested and require a budget form to be completed before money is released; in a small number of case the family income may be such that no grant is payable;

• You are already giving sacrificially by offering yourself for ordination (e.g. single candidates may be giving up their home to move into college). These are lifestyle issues that you will also be taking on as an ordained minister. It may well be that you will find yourself worse off financially during training (and indeed after ordination) than you are at present. In that situation you may well decide not to ‘give’ at the same level during your time in training (e.g. some students who tithe may, without abandoning the principle, give less while training);

• It is expected that all ordinands will ‘maximise the potential’ of any income, e.g. interest from savings and income from property, in order to contribute as far as possible to their own maintenance. (Selling up and putting everything into offshore accounts or long-term bonds is not in the spirit of our partnership in the Gospel!)

• Spouses of ordinands without dependent children are expected to work and so to contribute to the family budget. Permission for a spouse not to work must be given by the sponsoring bishop and is only granted in exceptional circumstances;

• If you wish to get married during training you need to obtain the good will of your bishop and his permission for you to continue in training after the marriage. The financial implications of this need to be considered carefully as they do if you plan to have children whilst in training;

• If you have sizeable debts you should not start training until a strategy for repayment has been agreed with your Area Director of Ordinands as debts are usually a bar to ordination.

You should discuss the financial aspects of your candidacy with your Area Director of Ordinands in the first instance. The Director of Ministry for the Diocese and his Finance Assistant are also available to offer advice and information. As soon as your bishop sponsors you for training we recommend that you contact the Financial Assistant, Elaine Saunders, if there are detailed financial questions which need answering. Contact details are below.

*A grant from Central Church Funds paid through the Ministry Division, will normally consist of £1,245

College tuition fees100%

College maintenance fees100% (normally)

Personal allowance£1,245

Short vacation allowance£ 348

Long vacation allowance£ 392

Travel allowance – for travel to and from college at beginning and end of term, if home is more than 20 miles from college – rate banded according to distance.

A personal contribution towards maintenance may be assessed where candidates are in receipt of an unearned income from savings and investments in excess of £1,015 per annum.

** For married candidates the diocese will issue a budget form to enable a diocesan family maintenance grant to be assessed. For a couple without children the assessment will be based upon an overall expected expenditure of £8,570 per annum (2006/7) plus housing and Council Tax costs. There is an additional assessment for children according to age. This assessment is based upon Government figures for average household income and expenditure. The figures followed in the assessment equate to the average income and expenditure of about 25% of families in the country.

For single candidates further financial assistance may be required beyond the level of the grant made from Central Church Funds. The diocese will issue a budget form to enable such additional assistance to be assessed by the diocese.

The Revd Nick Mercer

Director of Ministry

36 Causton Street

London

SW1P 4AU

0207932 1236

Finance Assistant

Elaine Saunders

0207932 1218

June 2006