St David's Church

What St David's Church does

St David's Church, Exeter is a Church of England parish church and registered charity (No. 1135766) operating from a Gothic Revival building designed by W D Caroe and consecrated on 9 January 1900 at Queen's Terrace, Exeter EX4 4HR. The parish serves residents of north-central Exeter, including Exeter University students and staff, and delivers religious services (Sunday Parish Communion, Evening Prayer, weekday Holy Communion), life-event ceremonies (weddings, baptisms, funerals), pastoral care, and community programs including a Thursday food package initiative serving 12-30 homeless individuals in supported accommodation, parish lunches at Exeter College, friendship café, men's breakfast, women's group, and bell ringing. The church building is also hired out as a concert venue, leveraging its noted acoustics, pipe organ, and grand piano.

The organization's revenue model is non-commercial, reflecting its charitable status. Primary income derives from voluntary tithes, offerings, and recurring stewardship pledges from congregation members, supplemented by pay-as-you-go hire fees for the church building and parish room for concerts, weddings, funerals, and community events. No revenue figures are publicly disclosed. Capital projects have historically been funded through grants from institutions including Heritage Lottery Fund (£248,000 across two phases), Viridor Credits (£75,000), Pennon Environmental, Garfield Weston, Bernard Sunley, The Cooper Legacy, and All Churches Trust. Operating geography is restricted to Southwest England (United Kingdom); the organization has no subsidiaries, no patents, no acquisitions, and no external investment ownership. Governance rests with a Parochial Church Council (PCC) under the Diocese of Exeter, currently led by Interim Vicar Rev. Mike Clark.

The church has six listed employees/key contacts and partners with St David's Church of England Primary School, St Wilfrid's School, Exeter College, YMCA Exeter, Exeter Community Centre, St Michael's Church (Mount Dinham), Exeter Colleges' Guild of Ringers, and Devon Wildlife Trust. The church completed a major transformation and repair project in 2016-2017, addressing structural foundation issues, installing a new kitchen and accessible facilities, and creating step-free entry. Digital infrastructure is limited to a WordPress website, Facebook streaming, YouTube archive, Twitter/X, weekly email newsletter, and bimonthly 'New Leaves' parish magazine. No app, API, or proprietary technology platform exists.

Name

St David's Church

Legal name

The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of St David Exeter

Website

https://stdavidschurchexeter.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1900

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

St David's Church, Exeter is a Church of England parish church and registered charity (No. 1135766) serving local residents, Exeter University affiliates, and vulnerable populations through worship services, life-event ceremonies, pastoral care, community programs, and venue hire.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Services and Place of Worship

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Community Food Services (624210), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

akta.pro primary industry

Local Congregations & Worship Communities (Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues) (BPAGAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling) (BPAGAJAG)

Keywords

• Religious worship services
• Community outreach programs
• Venue hire services
• Christian pastoral care
• Parish community events

Headquarters

HQ city

Exeter

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Tithes and Offerings: Voluntary donations and offerings from congregation members during services and through standing orders. This is the primary source of funding for church operations and charitable activities.
2. Venue and Facility Hire: Revenue from hiring the main Church building and Parish Room for concerts, weddings, funerals, christenings, and other events. Commercial bookings have variable pricing. Includes hiring of Grand Piano and Pipe Organ.
3. Stewardship and Planned Giving: Regular giving scheme where members commit to regular donations, often through bank standing orders or envelopes, supporting the ongoing mission and maintenance of the church.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

St David's Church is a Church of England parish church offering Christian worship services (Parish Communion, Evening Prayer, Holy Communion) using Common Worship liturgy, life event ceremonies including weddings, christenings, and funerals, community outreach programs such as a weekly food package program for homeless residents, and venue hire for concerts and events in a Grade-listed historic building. The church also runs bell ringing, choir, social groups, and parish lunches, supported by a Parochial Church Council (PCC) governance structure.

Product overview

St David's Church, Exeter is a Church of England parish church offering worship services and community programs. Core offerings include Sunday Parish Communion and weekday Holy Communion services (Common Worship), supported by an adult choir and instrumental group. The church building is available for hire as a concert venue with pipe organ and grand piano. Community services include a Thursday soup kitchen for homeless residents, parish lunches, women's group, men's breakfast, and various social activities. Life event services encompass baptisms/christenings, weddings, and funerals. The church provides 360-degree virtual tours of its historic building (consecrated 1900, designed by W.D. Caroe) and maintains a sermon archive. A monthly parish magazine (New Leaves) and weekly newsletters keep the congregation informed. The church is part of the Diocese of Exeter.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Worship Services Regular Sunday and weekday worship services including Parish Communion, Evening Prayer, and Holy Communion, using Church of England Common Worship liturgy. Services streamed on Facebook for remote attendance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Food packages delivered weekly to 12-30 homeless individuals in supported accommodation

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Diocese of ExetercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Parish of St David, Exeter is part of the Diocese of Exeter within the Church of England. The Diocese provides safeguarding support, liturgical resources (Common Worship), and pastoral oversight. The church upholds the Diocese's Safeguarding Policy and works with the Exeter Diocesan Safeguarding Team.
• Church of EnglandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSt David's Church operates under the governance and doctrine of the Church of England. Uses Church of England liturgical resources (Common Worship), wedding planning resources (yourchurchwedding.org), and funeral guidance (churchofenglandfunerals.org).
• St David's Church of England Primary SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrong partnership with the local primary school. Clergy team runs fortnightly school assemblies at St Michael's Church, with major services (Easter, Christmas, Leavers') held at St David's Church. School website at stdavidsprimary.devon.sch.uk.
• St Wilfrid's SchoolsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerClergy team leads monthly assemblies at St Wilfrid's School, with various services including Patronal Eucharist, Christmas Carols with prize-giving, Easter Eucharist, and End of Year Service held at St David's Church.
• YMCA ExetersecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with YMCA Exeter including joint Fellowship Lunches. YMCA provides supported accommodation for homeless individuals that St David's serves through their food package program.
• Exeter Community CentresecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Exeter Community Centre for community outreach and neighborhood programs. Located in the local area.
• Exeter CollegesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Exeter College for the Lunch Club program held at the college's catering learning department (@34 Restaurant). The church building is located opposite Exeter College. Exeter Colleges' Guild of Ringers adopted the church as their home tower in 1990.
• Exeter Colleges' Guild of RingerssecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerBell ringing group affiliated with Exeter Colleges. The guild adopted St David's as their home tower in 1990. Includes current university students, alumni, and local ringers. Practice nights open to visiting ringers.
• St Michael's Church (Mount Dinham)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister church relationship with St Michael's Church. Combined activities include Men's Breakfast gatherings, shared choir members for special occasions, and some joint services. Services occasionally held at St Michael's.
• Devon Wildlife TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmily Stallworthy from Devon Wildlife Trust consulted on enhancing the churchyard as wildlife habitat and creating space for people to interact with natural surroundings. Trust provided recommendations report for churchyard biodiversity improvements in 2014.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Exeter: Roman Catholic parish in Exeter offering Mass, sacraments, life-event services, and community programs. Comparable as another mainstream Christian parish church operating in the same city with similar worship and community functions.
• Exeter Cathedral: Also an Anglican place of worship in Exeter offering regular worship, heritage building tours, venue hire for concerts and events, and community outreach. Larger in scale but directly comparable as a Church of England worship and venue-hire operation in the same city.
• Exeter Mosque & Islamic Centre: Major place of worship in Exeter serving a different faith community but operating a comparable model: regular services, life-event facilities, community outreach, and registered charity status. Useful as a cross-faith peer for venue/program comparison.
• Wesley Methodist Church, Exeter: Methodist congregation in Exeter offering regular worship, life events, and community outreach. Comparable as a nonconformist Christian congregation competing for the same pool of Christian adherents in Exeter.
• Holy Trinity Church, Exeter: Another Church of England parish church in Exeter offering worship services, life-event ceremonies, and community programs. Directly comparable as a competing C of E parish for parishioners in overlapping Exeter catchments.
• St Michael and All Angels' Church, Mount Dinham (Exeter): Sister parish to St David's within the Diocese of Exeter with shared clergy activities (Men's Breakfast, joint choirs). Directly comparable as a Church of England parish offering worship, life-event services, and community programs in the same city.
• Heavitree Parish Church (St Michael & St George): Historic C of E parish church in Exeter. St David's was originally founded as a daughter church of Heavitree in the Anglo-Saxon period, making this the parent parish. Comparable as a long-standing Anglican parish serving a defined Exeter neighbourhood.
• St Thomas Church, Exeter: Church of England parish church across the River Exe from St David's, offering Sunday worship, life events, and parish activities. Comparable as a similarly sized C of E parish serving a defined Exeter residential catchment.

Others

• Exeter Community Centre: Active partner of St David's for community outreach and neighbourhood programmes. Comparable as a community-anchor venue offering meeting space and social programs, though secular rather than worship-focused.

Regional players

• Exeter Guildhall (Venue Hire): Historic Exeter venue offering space hire for concerts, weddings, and civic events in a heritage setting. Comparable as a competing hireable heritage venue in the same city, though operated by the local authority rather than a religious charity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/StDavids_Exeter
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC9CVo4jS7srvG64zs42KNCQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/stdavidschurchexeter
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/st-david's-church

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about St David's Church