What is a Community Audit?

Where the Church is - credit: CartoonChurch

Engaging and Consulting With The Community

A community audit is research that helps you to understand your community better by gathering detailed information about it. Mapping is finding out what assets, facilities and provision are available in the community, where they are and who accesses them. ​

Access the guide to Community Audits

The purpose of carrying out this research is to help you explore what opportunities there might be to develop community engagement and to increase or diversify use of your church building as a community asset. ​

The information will help you explore things like:​

  • Who already has connections with your church and who doesn’t ​
  • How to share information with and consult the community​
  • What community facilities and provision are available  ​
  • What organisations/groups there are who might be project supporters, partners, user-groups​
  • Who are the community leaders and how are things run​
  • Community needs and opportunities ​

Research like this is also an important building block for grant applications for projects such as to reorder your church building. The DAC and funding bodies will want to see evidence of how proposed use and/or development of the building will benefit the community by addressing an existing need or opportunity.  

Social Value Calculator

The National Churches Trust have produced this 'House of Good' tool for churches to calculate their social and economic benefits to the local community. The calculator assesses a wide range of factors and generates a report on the total local value. This information can be used to demonstrate the support being given to the local area and will be useful when preparing the Statement of Need for projects and initiatives.

Find out more about the House of Good tool here

Help and support

If you are thinking about major works to your church, then the Church Buildings Team can work with PCCs in the process of enabling re-ordering and other significant projects to the benefit of the church and local community that it serves. This support will be provided by the Church Buildings Community Engagement Enabler, in conjunction with the Senior Church Buildings Officer.

Contact the Church Buildings team

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