Case Study: The Church of England Diocese of Birmingham achieves real-time financial insight and automated payments with Xledger

The Church of England Diocese of Birmingham - Customer Case Study

The Church of England Diocese of Birmingham, a 300‑square‑mile diocese with about 220 staff and over 150 parsonages, faced complex budgeting and finance challenges driven by an on‑premise system and a "spaghetti of spreadsheets." Seeking true cloud capability and better data for decision‑making, the diocese engaged Xledger in 2016 to replace manual processes, improve Charity SORP compliance at data entry, and provide timely, accessible financial information across the organisation.

Xledger deployed a true cloud, integrated accounting platform with agile forecasting, automated banking, purchase ordering, project accounting, dashboards and real‑time reporting, plus ongoing vendor support and quarterly updates. Within six months the Diocese had a revised chart of accounts, 25 new users including budget holders, budgeting across more than 150 parsonages with live insight, and vastly simplified supplier payments — what once took days is now a press of a button — delivering clear visibility and faster, better decision‑making.

The Church of England Diocese of Birmingham

Melanie Crooks

Financial Director