A “ROBUST governance structure” is in place at the charity Leading Your Church Into Growth (LYCIG), which is expanding in size and entering into new contracts, it says.

LYCIG runs courses to support clergy and laity seeking to help their congregations to grow, and was first registered with the Charity Commission in 2004. This summer, the charity was closed and, in June, was transferred with its funds into a new charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) with the same name.

A statement provided by LYCIG last Tuesday said that the move to a CIO had been made after guidance from Commission, “because the only available copy of the original constitution, which was over 20 years old, was illegible, listed outdated AGM timings and used language that was not inclusive.

“This change was made to ensure we had a robust governance structure for employing a larger staff team and entering into contracts, ahead of agreeing a partnership with a major funder which was likely to catalyse those activities. The limited liability would also make it easier to attract new trustees, which we were struggling to do with a Registered Charity Trustee Board.”

Both charities had been run concurrently “for a short period” to allow for the full transfer of assets and to deal with any outstanding liabilities of the old charity, all of which had been completed in consultation with the Commission.

Last year, it was announced that the Strategic Ministry and Mission Investment Board (SMMIB) had awarded LYCIG £755,100 to support 1000 parishes (News, 1 November 2024). Both its staff team and trustee board have grown in size, and a new separate finance committee is meeting quarterly.