Churches in London are being encouraged to share their good news stories to stand a chance of winning £7,500 in a new competition.
‘Good News’ is a new competition for Anglican Churches launched by Ecclesiastical Insurance – with the chance to win £7,500 for their church.
The specialist insurer’s annual church competition shines a light on churches across the UK – their bright ideas and success stories, community heroes and ingenuity in the face of adversity.
After a year marked by extraordinary change, limitations and isolation, church communities, like many others, have been through incredibly challenging times.
The ‘Good News’ competition gives these churches the chance to share their good news stories and showcase all the ways that people in their local area have pulled together to make a difference.
It could be something the church community has done that has made life a little bit better, or easier for others, or a project that actively engaged with younger or older members of the local community.
Churches are encouraged to demonstrate what is new, different or imaginative about their activity, as well as how it has helped the local community and whether it could inspire others to do similar.
Entries should be submitted in the style of a news article with an attention-grabbing headline and no more than 250 words in length. Photographs or videos are also encouraged to go along with the article to help show the impact of their initiative. Ecclesiastical will showcase some of the best entries on its website and social media channels.
Each entry is automatically entered into the regional competition where a panel of judges, which will include representatives from the five regions, will each select a regional winner who will each receive a prize of £1,500 for their church.
The grand final of the competition will see one of the regional winners be crowned the national winner and receive an additional £6,000 – bringing their total winnings to £7,500.
Michael Angell, church operations director at Ecclesiastical Insurance, said: “It goes without saying that the last year has been challenging for so many of us – and that includes our churches.
“Despite the challenges that the pandemic has brought with it, churches have remained a beacon of hope to the communities they are based in. They have shown resilience and a willingness to adapt, diversifying to offer local residents more than ever before – from food banks, to home deliveries and vaccination centres
“That’s why this year’s theme for our church competition is ‘Good News’! We want to help shine a light on those unsung heroes in our communities and the new initiatives that churches have come up with to help those most in need – spreading the ‘Good News’ far and wide.”
The competition launches on Tuesday 1 June with closing date for entries 5pm on Friday 17 September.
Entries can be submitted through the online form at www.ecclesiastical.com/churchcomp.
