ChurchSuite is a church management software package which  the Parish of Our Lady of Lourdes & St Dominic Savio (OLSD) is using from 2024, to administer parish records electronically, replacing the former manual registration forms.

‘My ChurchSuite’ is the parishioner-facing, confidential view of ChurchSuite which allows people to manage their own details (including those of their own children), sign up for events, join small groups and see rotas. Login information for ‘My ChurchSuite’ is sent to parishioners once they have registered on ChurchSuite. 

‘My ChurchSuite’ is designed to be an engagement tool to supplement what we already do and is not meant to be a replacement.  For example, we may encourage people to sign up for events using ‘My ChurchSuite’ in the first instance; but for those who may not have access we will provide an alternative such as a sign-up sheet. 

It will all allow us to:

• WORK SMARTER – have the parish records available electronically so they can be used proactively by the priest and PPC to produce statistics and analyse trends.
• ACT MORE PROFESSIONALLY – comply with GDPR data regulations and ensure we adopt best practice regarding safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.
• SAVE TIME – make rota planning easier for organisers, and provide much simpler access to rotas for all parish volunteers; provide a simple way for small group leaders to manage their groups; record group attendance and then have a reliable basis for pastoral care in their groups.
• RUN BETTER SERVICES AND PROGRAMMES – standardise rotas and registers so that all the activities around events (including Mass, Ministries and Sacramental programmes) are in one place – this will help planning and communication.
• PROTECT YOUR DATA – provide a platform that will help us maintain privacy in a way that shows we value data protection, always using people’s details responsibly and by their consent.
• COMMUNICATE – provide information about upcoming events via the ChurchSuite calendar; distribute rotas; send targeted emails if needed.

• PARISH RECORDS – maintenance in a GDPR-compliant way (replacing current manual forms).
• VOLUNTEER ROTAS – creation, management and communication.
• ONLINE SIGNUPS – signups and registration to events and sacramental programmes.
• BOOKINGS – online management of meeting room and Parish Hall Bookings.
• CALENDAR – online parish calendar covering all services, events and activities.

• No – it is entirely up to you.
• If you are active in the parish it would be helpful if you are registered so that you can be easily and securely added to rotas or included in small groups.
• For census purposes it would be useful to have some basic information about you eg just your name.
• We may send targeted emails via ChurchSuite so you may miss some information if you do not provide your email however we will always endeavour to communicate via other means as well eg announcements at Masses and services, via the weekly newsletter and via the parish website.
• We do ask you to register your family if you wish to take part in our sacramental programmes such as Baptism, First Holy Communion and Confirmation.  If you have concerns about this, please talk to Fr Anthony.

• To enable us to comply with our statutory obligations and to achieve our charitable objectives of advancing and maintaining the Roman Catholic religion through the operation of our parish.
• To collect census records about our parish for the Diocese.
• To enable the Priest to get hold of you in an emergency.
• To provide a central and secure record of all parents and children taking part in our sacramental programmes.
• To help administer activities and ministries run by the parish.

• When you register we ask you to enter your name and postcode. We need your postcode as an indication that you live locally enough to be able to come to our church.  We understand that this may not always the case eg for those who ‘attend’ Mass virtually via our live-stream. 
• All other information is optional and includes contact information like home address, email and mobile phone number. You need only provide information with which you are comfortable.  We encourage people who are active in ministries and groups in the church to provide at least one means of communication and to make it visible so that others within the group/ministry can contact them eg to send a rota swap request.
• We ask about your skills as it is useful to know what skillset we have amongst our parishioners. This is optional.
• You can upload a recent photo if you wish. This can be an aid to recognition for Fr Anthony.  This is optional.

• OLSD adheres to the Data Protection Policy Procedures as set out by the Diocese of Portsmouth: Diocesan Operating Procedures – Data Protection – January 2022.
• OLSD adheres to the Privacy Notice as set out by the Diocese of Portsmouth: Diocese of Portsmouth Privacy Notice.
• Administrator access to ChurchSuite is password-protected and requires multi-factor authentication and is limited to Fr Anthony and the ChurchSuite Lead.
• ChurchSuite holds all our data securely using UK data centres. Data is backed up daily and protected by 24/7 physical security access control, fire suppression and redundant power failure systems. Full details of ChurchSuite’s security measures can be found here.

There are three levels:

1. INDIVIDUAL (MY CHURCHSUITE) – you will be provided with access to your own data via ‘My ChurchSuite’ where you can edit your records and control your privacy settings. Details of how to log into ‘My ChurchSuite’ will be emailed to you after the registration process is completed.
2. ‘MY ROTAS’ and ‘MY GROUPS’ – volunteers , Ministers and group members will have limited visibility of group member information via their ‘My ChurchSuite’ login (see below *).
3. ADMINISTRATOR – access to the full ChurchSuite database for administrators is password-protected with multi-factor authentication and is currently limited to the priest, Fr Anthony Lobo (alobo@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk) and the ChurchSuite Lead, Jo Wood ( media@olsd.org.uk) only.

ChurchSuite is GDPR-compliant and you will have control over your privacy settings.

* Most of the content of ChurchSuite does not involve people being able to view one another’s contact details; instead, the content is personal to the individual who is logged in, showing information as it relates to them. There are two exceptions to this – ‘My Rotas’ and ‘My Groups’. If you serve on a rota or are in a small group, your fellow team/group members will only be able to see the contact details that you choose to set visible eg your email address. It is helpful but not compulsory for at least one means of communication to be visible to others, for example, when you need to be contacted for things like rota swap requests.

• Your data will be held securely and remotely on a central database administered professionally by ChurchSuite (https://churchsuite.com). No data will be held locally on individuals’ personal computers or devices. 

• Children (under 18) should be registered by their parents/carers’ as part of their family’s registration using the ‘Add Child’ option. You need only record their name and specify whether you give photo/video consent.  It is helpful if you include date of birth and sex.
• Children in the family over 18 years of age should register independently as an adult.
• Any communication via ChurchSuite to children will be sent to their parents/carers.
• All children taking part in sacramental programmes at OLSD must be registered.

• You can upload a recent photo to ChurchSuite if you wish. This can be an aid to recognition for Fr Anthony.  This is optional.
• You can choose to give consent for photos of your children to be included on the parish website and other materials. Please note that we will never identify any photos with names.

Go to the registration page on the parish website https://www.olsd.org.uk/about/register/ and fill in the online form.

There will be manned ‘information points’ after the Sunday Masses during the census period.  They will be able to help you.  Alternatively, speak to Fr Anthony and he will arrange for someone to help you.

You can still register so that our census information is comprehensive.  Without an email address you will not be able to log in to ‘My ChurchSuite’. We will always ensure that there is an alternative way of updating your own data or receiving information from the church.  ‘My ChurchSuite’ is designed to be an engagement tool to supplement what we already do and is not meant to be a replacement.  For example, we may encourage people to sign up for events using ‘My ChurchSuite’ in the first instance; but for those who may not have access we will provide an alternative such as a sign-up sheet. ‘

Families who share an email address can still use ‘My ChurchSuite’. Each family member is sent a ‘My ChurchSuite’ email invitation from their contact profile page as usual. The email is personalised, so each family member can identify their invite. Each invite has a unique login link so that each family member can set their password, which must be different to that of other family members. In this way, ‘My ChurchSuite’ can correctly identify which family member is logging in.

• OLSD used to have a paper registration form which was filled out every three years by each parish family. This was stored in a paper file and locked away.  It was difficult to retrieve data from the file, it was difficult to update and was not as secure as an online electronic system. 
• We now have access to powerful electronic systems for the storage of data and we would like to benefit from these.
• Leaders of groups and Ministries currently maintain their own lists on paper or on their own computers. This is less secure than the centralised system provided by ChurchSuite.

You can update your own data at any point if you need to make changes. We will invite you to review your data via ‘My ChurchSuite’ at least once a year to ensure that it is up to date.  Obsolete data will be removed after seven years. 

Please talk to Fr Anthony or email your questions to media@olsd.org.uk.