News and Resources
NEWS: Cost of electricity supply upgrades
For parishes looking to connect to an electricity supply, or upgrade from single phase to three phase, the cost changes brought into force on 1st April 2023 through Ofgem’s Significant Code Review can make a huge difference. The changes mean that while we still pay to connect to the electricity network, we no longer pay for improvements to the network (e.g. upgrading substations). The details are explained on the National Grid’s significant code review webpage. If a quote for connection looks extremely high, it is a good idea to check that you are working from a quote obtained since 1 April 2023 – the difference could be tens of thousands of pounds.
Audio-visual equipment on parish buying
One result of the pandemic is an increase in the number of churches livestreaming services and making new demands on the AV equipment. Parish buying has started a new category with suppliers of AV equipment to churches. It is available here:
https://www.parishbuying.org.uk/categories/audio-visual-equipment
CCTV Policy
The ChurchCare webpage has a huge amount of advice and guidance on all matters relating to CCTV and its use - licensing, privacy, livestreaming, copyright, data storage. It also includes a GDPR compliant template policy document that will allow churches to govern the installation and operation of all CCTV cameras within their church building and a warning sign to alert visitors that such a system is in use. The policy template will need to be tailored to the requirements of the building and must be followed by all staff including consultants and contractors. You can find it all here: Closed Circuit Television
[Page updated 9th May 2022]