The first place a person will look to get information about your church is online. This page contains advice on parish websites and how churches can make the most of their presence on 'A Church Near You'.
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Parish websites
Your church website can play an important part in your communications and profile in the local community.
A good church website:
- is a shop front to the local community and will be seen by people who are looking for more information about exploring faith, weddings, baptisms, funerals, mums and toddler groups, food banks, church schools, local history and much more.
- is a resource hub for your congregation and church leaders, providing vital information.
- can be a key part of your stewardship and giving programme.
- can help give voice to your church in the local community.
- a good church website need not be expensive, and by using a website template system, it need not be managed by an expert.
When purchasing a website package, you normally need to purchase three things:
- A domain name - your unique website address.
- Hosting space - a space on a server where all your content will be stored.
- A content management system - a tool to easily edit your website, so you don't need to use code.
The template website services above will allow you to purchase all three of these services and usually pay for them with a small monthly payment. They will also provide guidelines to help you edit the website.
Template services also allow you to purchase or integrate other functionality, such as giving tools.
If you have a bigger budget for your parish website, you may wish to consider having a bespoke website built by a web designer.
For further advice on parish websites, contact our web designer, James Cottis. James also offers a service to build parish websites.
A Church Near You
Every Church of England church in the country can be found on www.achurchnearyou.com. If you have no website at all, this is a good place to start to make sure people can find out essential information about your church.
The 'A Church Near You' Help Centre contains a wealth of helpful information and ‘how to guides’ to help you make the most out of your 'A Church Near You' page:
The blog below explains how 'A Church Near You' can be used as a church’s website page:
The 'A Church Near You' Resource Hub
If you have ownership of your 'A Church Near You' page, you will have access to a wide range of resources from the Church of England through the 'A Church Near You' Resource Hub. More information on the free resources available on the 'A Church Near You' Resource Hub can be found on our Design tools, images and digital resources webpage.
