Top Banner
Your guide to fundraising
23

Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Jun 21, 2020

Download

Documents

dariahiddleston
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Page 1: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Your guide to fundraising

Page 2: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Hi there, Welcome to your guide to fundraising. We’re so glad that you’ve chosen to support The Children’s Society and can’t thank you enough for the difference you’re making.

We’ve put together this guide to help you with your fundraising activities and hopefully inspire you to think of new ways to make your fundraising as successful as possible.

Inside you’ll find our top tips for planning your activity, as well as the success stories of people who, like you, decided to do something to help some of the most vulnerable children in this country.

The money you raise from your event is absolutely vital in helping us to keep supporting children and young people who desperately need someone to turn to.

It’s another step forward in helping us to fulfil our vision of a country where children are free from disadvantage – something we simply couldn’t do without you.

We do hope this guide will help you to get your fundraising off to a good start, but if you need any help or advice along the way, remember that we are here if you need us – just use the contact details below.

Thank you so much again for supporting us and good luck with your fundraising. Together, we really can make a huge difference to the lives of thousands of children.

Yours gratefully, The Fundraising teamThe Children’s Society

Always here to help If you ever have any fundraising questions or queries, please contact our dedicated Supporter Care team on 0300 303 7000 (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm) or email [email protected]’re always happy to help.

ContentsPlanning your activity Page 4

Step 1: Decide what you’re going to do Page 6

Step 2: Get the word out Page 10

Step 3: Run the activity Page 12

Fundraising inspiration Page 16

Making it count Page 28

Why your fundraising matters Page 32

Be safe, be legal Page 36

Resources Page 42

32

Page 3: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Planning your activity

5

Page 4: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

There are hundreds of tried and tested fundraising ideas you can choose from. Or you may want to do something completely original. However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

We’re sure you have lots of interests, strengths and talents that will be perfect for raising money to support the life-changing work of The Children’s Society.

Start with you or your group

When thinking about how to fundraise, the first thing to do is focus on you or the fundraising group you’re part of. What are you good at? What do you enjoy doing? Could you use any of your hobbies to fundraise? With this in mind, start to write a list of ideas for your own fundraising activity.

If you’re struggling to think of something, take a look at some of our fundraising ideas on pages 18 to 27, or our full list online at childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraise

Step 1:Decide what you’re going to do

‘To anybody wantingadvice on how to raise money I would say, think of something you are good at and enjoy and develop an idea from that.’Carole Kirk, Nottingham

‘I was happy to help my daughter with her fundraising event and we love cooking together – it was just like old times!’ Mrs Thomas, Hampshire

We’ve found that most fundraising activities fall into the following categories:

• Collections and sales

• Arts and crafts

• Food and drink

• Music and dance

• Games, sports and competitions

• Personal challenges

• Parties and get togethers

Throughout this guide, we hope you’ll also be inspired by the stories of fundraisers who successfully reached (and in some cases exceeded) their fundraising targets by simply doing what they enjoy. You can see these on pages 18 to 27.

76

Page 5: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

When deciding which fundraising activity to do, there are five key things to think about:

1 How will your activity raise money?

It may seem obvious, but it’s surprisingly easy to get so caught up in the fun of organising an activity, that actually raising money could end up being an after thought. Be sure to take the time to consider exactly how your activity will raise money, particularly if there is expense involved in organising it.

Depending on the type of activity you run, you could fundraise by:

• charging entry fees for your activity (make sure they at least cover any costs you incur)

• asking people to sponsor you for doing an activity, for example, a personal challenge

• selling items such as food, drink or handmade products (remember to check health and safety rules)

• asking for a donation to participate in a raffle, tombola, auction or quiz.

2 Where will your activity take place?

Select a venue that can accommodate expected numbers, has the right atmosphere, facilities and equipment, is accessible by public transport and has disabled access.

If hiring a venue, check what the hire price includes and the conditions of hire. It’s also worth asking if you can get a discount as a charity fundraiser.

Most importantly of all, select a venue that’s right for the people you want to take part and which will maximise your fundraising.

3 When will your activity take place?

Choose a date that leaves enough time to plan your activity and invite people. You’ll also want to avoid clashing with any other local fundraising activities or events.

If you decide to do an outdoor activity, remember to consider the weather and put plans in place in case of rain, snow or whatever the Great British weather throws at you!

For more ideas on how to maximise your fundraising, see our top tips on page 30

4 What will you need?

Think about how your activity will run from start to finish and come up with a list of things you’ll need. Write down absolutely everything you can think of - from posters and invitations to promote your event, to risk assessments and licenses to help you run your event safely, as well as any other equipment relating to your specific activity.

We have a number of FREE resources available to order from our warehouse on 0300 30 30 555 (Mon–Fri, 8am–9pm; Sat–Sun, 9am–6pm) or from our online webshop at shop.childrenssociety.org.uk

5 Who will you need help from?

Organising a fundraising activity is a lot of fun, but it can also involve a lot of hard work. Do not try and do everything yourself. Draw up a to-do list of what needs to be done and ask family, friends, members of your fundraising group or whoever else can get involved to give you a helping hand.

Create a to-do list

Remember to give specific tasks to any volunteers

helping you and let them know well in advance what you need

them to do and when they need to do it by.

98

Page 6: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Although the majority of those who support your fundraising are likely to be people you already know, it’s still really important to actively promote your fundraising activity.

Step 2:Get the word out

As well as promoting what your fundraising activity involves,

it’s also important to explain to people why you’re raising money

for The Children’s Society.

Alternatively, you can also invite one of our speakers to your event.

Simply contact our Supporter Care team on 0300 303 7000

(Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm)

1 When do I need to publicise what I am doing?

Try to publicise your event both before and afterwards for maximum impact. Your local paper may have an events listing guide that could include your event.

2 Who to target?

Your main audience will be your local papers and local radio. You will need to send them information about your event. Local papers are always interested in local stories, but they can’t print everything. So, to give your story the best chance of being picked up be as descriptive as you can and try to include any extraordinary or unusual facts. This type of information will help your story come alive and be more attractive for the media. Always mention that you are raising money for The Children’s Society.

3 How do I contact the media?

The quickest and easiest way to contact the media is by email or telephone. Compile a list of local media using the internet or a phone book and contact them to find out when their deadlines are. Prepare a press release (or use our template) which you can email to the news or features desks at your local paper or forward planning desks at your local radio station. You should follow up press releases with a phone call.

4 How do I write a press release?

Use our template – stick to the facts and remember to include any interesting, quirky or original details.

6 How can I use social media?

You can use social media like Facebook or Twitter to promote your event to your friends and family. You can also let us know about your event by tweeting @childrensociety or posting on our Facebook page facebook.com/childrenssociety

5 What else do I need to remember?

Stories are more attractive to editors if they have a photo to accompany them.

7 Can I use your logo?

Please use the ‘In Support of The Children’s Society’ logo on any materials you create yourself. Contact Supporter Care who can send you the guide and logo as an image file. Just call 0300 303 7000.

‘It’s word of mouth that works well for us – it helps people feel more connected to the cause.’ Christine Shadbolt, Somersham

Tell people why you’re fundraising

10 11

Page 7: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

To make your fundraising go as smoothly as possible, it’s important you also remember these key things just before, during and after your activity.

1 Safety and other legal bits

Make sure you have arranged how money will be collected and safely stored, and who will be collecting it.

Important: please don’t forget to ask people who support your fundraising to Gift Aid their donations, if they are a UK taxpayer. They can do this by simply providing the Gift Aid details needed on sponsorship forms, donation forms and collection envelopes (all of which can be ordered from us). This small act will help to boost their donations by a fantastic 25%.

2 Money matters

To make sure your activity is enjoyable for everyone involved, don’t forget to do those all-important final safety and legal checks.

For more information on safety and legal requirements and our helpful tips, see page 38

Step 3:Run the activity

12 13

Page 8: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

3 Saying thanks

Please remember to thank your helpers and supporters and celebrate the success of your fundraising with them.

If possible, try to share your final fundraising total at the end of your activity, or within a few days after it’s ended. This really helps to show people how much of a difference they’ve made. Email or social media may be the best way to do this.

You could also use the amounts featured in the ‘How we use the money you raise’ section on page 31 of this guide to show people how the total they helped to raise will be used to change the lives of children.

4 Paying in your money

It’s really important that we receive the money you raise as soon as possible, so we can use it to fund our vital work up and down the country. You can pay in cash donations from most activities at your local Barclays bank using one of our fundraising giros (you can use a giro to pay in at other banks, but you may be charged for doing so). If you don’t have a giro, please call 0300 303 7000 (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm) or email [email protected] and we’ll send you one. You could also bank your fundraising total into your own account and send us a cheque for the correct amount to the address below.

Please make all cheques payable to The Children’s Society.

The Children’s SocietyFreepost RSYH-HEEE-XZEG

Edward Rudolf House69–85 Margery Street

London WC1X 0JL

Please do not send any coins or banknotes through the post.

The Children’s SocietyFreepost RSYH-HEEE-XZEG

Edward Rudolf House69–85 Margery Street

London WC1X 0JL

Please do not send any coins or banknotes through the post.

Tell us about your fundraising

We love hearing about your fundraising events, so if you

have any photos or stories you’d like to share with us, please

send them to [email protected]

Alternatively, you can pay funds in online or by setting up your own individual fundraising page through sites such as JustGiving and Virgin Money Giving. Setting up a fundraising page is a really easy way for you to receive donations from family, friends and colleagues and make sure it gets to us safely and quickly.

To create your own page, visit justgiving.com or uk.virginmoneygiving.com and follow the simple instructions provided. Also, please remember to tell people on your page why you’re fundraising for The Children’s Society and the difference we make to children’s lives.

Don’t forget to encourage people to Gift Aid their donation as well, if they qualify for the scheme. See page 30 for more details.

For more information on paying in funds, please visit childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraise

If you use sponsorship forms or collection envelopes as part of your fundraising activity, please remember to return them to us with your name, details of what you did and your fundraising total. Remember to make sure collection envelopes are completely empty before sending them.

14 15

Page 9: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Fundraising inspiration

17

Page 10: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

If you’re struggling to think of a fundraising activity to organise, take a look at some of the ideas in this section and the stories of other fundraisers for some inspiration. A full list of fundraising ideas can be found online at childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraise

Collections and sales

Non-uniform days, jumble sales and street collections are all fantastic ways of raising money. They are often quite simple to organise and don’t usually require too much equipment. If you are doing this type of activity, don’t forget that you can order collection buckets and tins from us for free by calling 0300 30 30 555 (Mon–Fri, 8am–9pm; Sat–Sun, 9am–6pm) or by visiting our online shop at shop.childrenssociety.org.uk

If you’re holding a sale or raffle, let people know what they can buy or win before your event takes place. Great prizes will generate more interest, so remember to feature photos of what’s available. Also encourage people to give more by telling them they’ll be entered into a prize draw for every £5, or other fixed amount, they donate.

Our favourite fundraising ideas

Top tip

A great fundraising idea...

Activity type: Ruby wedding anniversary

Amount raised: £605

Who did it: Gill and David Robertson

How they did it: The couple planned a celebration lunch with friends and family to celebrate 40 years of marriage. On the invitations, they said ‘No presents thank you, but donations, if desired, to The Children’s Society.’

What they say:

‘ We try to find events that other local fundraising groups haven’t done, to attract a wider audience. We keep the Children’s Society in people’s consciousness by putting articles in the Parish Magazine, providing information about what The Children’s Society does.’

1918

Page 11: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Arts and crafts

If you or your friends have a flair for making things, then an arts and crafts fair, exhibition or even some knitting could be the perfect way for you to fundraise. Simply create your wares and display them for people to see and charge a fee for each item purchased.

Contact local arts and crafts clubs and ask them if they would be interested in supporting your fundraising. They could help you organise an event or donate artwork or craft items to be sold. You could also approach craft supply companies about donating art resources to support your fundraising work.

Food and drink

A bake sale, wine tasting evening or BBQ are all great fundraising activities if you and your friends are big fans of food. You can raise money by charging a set price for a plate of food, or by asking for a donation at the door.

Including a free drink or a raffle ticket as part of someone’s entry fee can add value to the price and may encourage more people to attend your event.

Top tip Top tip

A great fundraising idea...

Activity type: Bake sale

Amount raised: £130

Who did it: Melksham Committee

How they did it: Every September, the committee bakes cakes, breads, quiches and other fine foods to sell in town. They then sell them in different venues in the precinct and from their own stall.

What they say:

‘ The Children’s Society’s values and name makes the activity special, but it also helps to have good weather – a sunny day makes people more generous!’

20 21

Page 12: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Music and dance

Open mic nights, carol singing or a concert of classical music can help you to pull in crowds of music lovers who will happily support your fundraising. If holding a music competition, you can charge entrants to compete as well as an entry fee to those in the audience. Charging for food and drink and holding a collection during breaks or intervals can make your fundraising go even further.

Raffles and silent auctions all work well at music and dance events, especially if prizes are linked to the entertainment on offer. You could also sell items that are related to your event to raise more money, for example, CDs of bands or orchestras your event features. Or how about recording karaoke performers and selling a compilation CD after your event?

Games, sports and competitions

A bit of friendly competition is a fantastic way of bringing people together to have fun and raise money with little effort. Sweepstakes, pub quizzes and treasure hunts can help you to raise money fairly easily – simply charge entrants for participating and make sure you have some good prizes on offer to encourage people to take part.

‘Three of the churches in our area got together to put on a music and poetry night. We were lucky to have local contacts who helped us with promoting the event and managed to raise £568.’Pat Griffith, Weston-Super-Mare

Top tip

A great fundraising idea...

Activity type: Treasure hunt

Amount raised: £150

Who did it: Rushden Committee

How they did it: The Committee hid clues around the town and charged a small fee for anyone wishing to take part. The hunt started at the local church where everyone returned at the end to have cream tea. The first team to complete the hunt and have all the correct answers was awarded a prize.

What they say:

‘Many of the people are very competitive and it is fun to watch. Many wives team up to battle their husbands. There is also great teamwork within each pairing. We charge 50p a ticket but you could change this depending on your audience.’

22 23

Page 13: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Personal challenges

Put your endurance to the test by taking on a personal challenge. You could organise your own activity such as giving up something you love, a sponsored silence, or take on a challenge such as the London Marathon, an obstacle course or an overseas trek with support from our Events Team. As well as being a great fundraiser, many of these events are a fantastic way to get fit and do something extraordinary. Visit childrenssociety.org.uk/challenges for more information.

For all personal challenges, speak to family, friends and colleagues about sponsoring you. This could be done face-to-face, via email or through social media such as Facebook. You may also find it helpful to set up an online fundraising page on sites such as JustGiving or Virgin Money Giving.

Top tip A great fundraising idea...

Activity type: Tough kids

Amount raised: £400

Who did it: Bryony Greengrass

Why she did it: Having fundraised for The Children’s Society from the age of three, Bryony took on the challenge of completing a 7k obstacle course involving a lot of mud in just over two hours. Her Mum helped her to set up a JustGiving page so people could sponsor her.

What she said:

‘I think the way The Children’s Society helps children is awesome and I like fundraising for them because sadly not every child has the support and love I do to overcome the challenges they face.‘

2524

Page 14: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

A great fundraising idea...

Activity type: Fancy dress swim

Amount raised: £750

Who did it: University of Liverpool Swimming Baths

How they did it: The group got in touch with all of the swimming clubs in Liverpool, inviting people to take part in a sponsored swim wearing a fancy dress costume of their choice.

What they say:

‘Make as many contacts as you can, and keep in touch with them as much as possible. Have a group JustGiving page so that everyone can see and how much they have raised personally.’

Parties and get togethers

Birthdays, anniversaries, a garden party or a coffee morning are all good for bringing friends and family together to raise money and make a difference. Charging entry fees, selling food and drink or asking for donations instead of gifts can make these types of fundraising activities really simple.

Entry fees, selling food and drink and organising a raffle or tombola are all great for parties and get togethers. Plus, you could also organise games or competitions that people have to donate to enter. Two simple ideas are guess the amount of sweets in a jar or the weight of the cake, with the nearest answer winning the tasty treat on offer.

‘My garden party was a great excuse to gather friends and neighbours to celebrate summer and enjoy some great food and drink. And we raised nearly £400 for a great cause!’ Mrs Lamb, Folkestone

Top tip

2726

Page 15: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Making it count

28 29

Page 16: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Whatever your fundraising activity, there are some simple things you can do to help your fundraising go even further.

Gift Aid

One of the simplest ways to maximise your fundraising is to ask the people who are supporting your activity to Gift Aid their donations if they are taxpayers.

To do this, they simply need to provide us with their full name and address, enabling us to claim an additional 25p per £1 at no extra cost to the person making the donation. Our collection envelopes, sponsorship and donation forms all include Gift Aid information, making it easy to add even more value to your fundraising.

For more information, please see our Gift Aid guidelines online at childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraise

Boost your fundraising

Last year, we received over £1.4m in Gift Aid, on top of the money generously donated by individual supporters. The additional funds are vital in helping us to change the lives of even more children – imagine how much more we could do if everyone Gift Aided their donations?

72pin every

£1 we spend goes directly towards supporting children

Cost savings

If your fundraising activity involves supplying food and drink, you need some good prizes for your raffle, or some merchandise for your jumble sale, don’t feel under pressure to provide everything yourself. You can ask friends and family to contribute food, drink, and old or unwanted clothes and ask local shops if they’d be willing to donate some of their stock to support your fundraising. If writing to shops, we have a template letter available for you to use online at childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraise

Add-ons

Activities such as a raffle, tombola, silent auctions and other games can easily be incorporated into your main fundraising activity, helping you to lift your fundraising income even more. There may also be other things you can do which are relevant to your particular activity. If holding a music event for example, you could produce a recording of the performances and sell them after the event.

How we use the money you raise

We are committed to ensuring that we provide the best support possible for children and young people, which is why we are so mindful of how we spend the money which is raised for us. 72p in every £1 that we spend goes directly towards supporting children

and for every £1 spent, we raise £4. Below are just a few examples of how the money you raise could help to support a disadvantaged child.

£50 could help an independent

visitor provide long-term support to a

neglected child living in care, bringing

much-needed permanence and stability

into their life.

£100 could help to train a new project worker so they can provide vital support to children living on the streets who have run away from horrific physical and mental abuse.

£250 could help poorer families learn about good health and nutrition, leading to significant improvements in the well-being of disadvantaged children.

£500 could help a project worker deliver intensive one-to-one support sessions to a neglected teenager who was sexually exploited by an adult.

£1,000 could help to fund our Young Carers Festival, which gives young carers the opportunity to relax, have fun, forget about their caring duties and discuss issues that really matter to them.

for every

£1we spend

we raise

£430 31

Page 17: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Groomed child. Helping hand. Growing trust.

Right now in the UK, more than 16,500 children are at high risk of rape and abuse by predatory adults.

The Children’s Society’s services provide confidential and independent support and advice for all young people at risk or who have been sexually exploited, some of whom have gone missing from home or care. This ranges from intensive one-to-one support provided by a project worker to group work that educates children and young people about healthy relationships. Our Policy team also lobbies and influences decision makers to make sure that children at risk of sexual exploitation are identified as early as possible and given the support they need to move on with their life.

‘ The Children’s Society has been a champion for me, really. They never gave up, and I really needed that.’

Abbie, 15

Young runaway. Understanding listener. Bright future.

Every five minutes in this country a child runs away from home or care. This equates to more than 100,000 children each year, many of which are fleeing terrifying violence and abuse.

The Children’s Society has led the research, policy and practice agenda to protect young runaways for over 30 years. Recent successes include over 40 local authorities signing up to our Runaways Charter and all councils having to offer young runaways a return interview, which can be vital to getting to the root of problems. In addition, our services provide independent and confidential help, advice and support for children who have run away or are at risk of running away.

‘ The Children’s Society has really helped me turn my life around.’

Janine, 15

Why your fundraising matters

Unloved teenager. Now supported. New hope.

Children in care tell us that they feel unsupported and no one listens to what they have to say. This often results in frustration, poorer life chances and little self-worth.

The Children’s Society knows the UK’s care system is failing children. This is why we tirelessly lobby the government to improve the situation for children in care so they have happy childhoods and go on to live fulfilling adult lives. We also provide advocacy services so the voices of children in care are heard. And we train and support independent visitors who regularly meet children in care to listen to their needs and help them work through any problems they’re facing.

‘ If The Children’s Society wasn’t here to help children like me, then there would be a lot more people suffering.’

Emily, 17

3332

Page 18: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Why your fundraising matters

The money you raise helps us to keep providing support to thousands of children each year. Here are just a few examples of how your fundraising makes a difference to the lives of children who desperately need our help.

A positive impact on childrenAn encouraging 80% of the children The Children’s Society works with show positive change. The largest improvements are in:

• their emotional and mental health

• their ability to have their views and opinions heard about things that really matter to them

• their overall safety.

We improve thousands of children’s lives every yearIn 2014, we worked with 34,893 children and young people and provided intensive support to nearly 15,820 of them. This specialist help changed the stories of disadvantaged children and their families up and down the country.

A positive impact on familiesAn encouraging 81% of the families The Children’s Society works with show positive change. The largest improvements are in:

• the emotional well-being of parents and their children

• the support networks that families can rely on locally

• behaviour management and boundary setting with children.

We make sure the most basic needs of children are metThanks to our Fair and Square campaign, all infant school pupils started to receive a free school meal from September 2014. This means 200,000 more children living in poverty can rely on at least one hot, nutritious meal every school day – and hard-pressed families have help in facing rising costs and food prices.

We learn and act upon what children tell us

Over 45,000 children and young people have taken part in our well-being research. This has helped us to explore young lives in a meaningful way and understand what’s important to children. We also use this knowledge and understanding when working with local authorities that want to make children’s lives better.

We transform the life chances of young carers

Thanks to our campaigning, historic changes were made to the Children and Families Bill and Care Bill that mean when a child is identified as a young carer the needs of everyone in their family are now considered. This is making sure young carers are far less likely to fall behind at school and miss out on their childhoods.

34 35

Page 19: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Be safe, be legal

3736

Page 20: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

We want you to have fun and raise as much money as possible. But it’s also vital that you fundraise in a safe, legal and efficient way, so you and your supporters have the best time possible. To help you do this, we recommend you read the tips in this section.

Collections

When carrying out a collection in public, you must seek a licence from your local authority, or in some cases the police.

Call our Supporter Care team on 0300 303 7000 for further information and advice.

Food and alcohol

Check if the venue where you’re holding your activity is licensed to sell alcohol.If necessary, you may need to contact your local council about getting a temporary licence.

For current food hygiene rules and guidelines, contact your local council or visit food.gov.uk

Be safe, be legal

‘There were lots of children at my event, and I took tons of photos. Of course, I made sure parents gave their consent before sharing online or with the local paper.’ Jo Thomas, Kent

Entertainment

For some activities you may need an entertainment licence. To find out about what licences you need, contact your local council. You can find yours by searching ‘local councils’ at direct.gov.uk

There are also a number of other useful websites that offer general advice:

• raisingfunding.co.uk

• charitycommission.gov.uk

• institute-of-fundraising.org.uk

• prsformusic.com

Health and safety

When holding an activity, it’s important to think about the health and safety of those who are helping you, those attending and the general public, as well the impact your fundraising will have on your local environment. In addition, you will need to consider accessibility and address any security concerns before settling on a privately-owned venue.

To cover all of these issues, we suggest you carry out a risk assessment before your activity takes place. If you’re holding your fundraiser in a privately owned venue, speak to an appropriate representative about the venue’s own risk assessment. It may be the case that you can simply add to it to cover your activity.

For activities organised and undertaken at your workplace, make sure you consider the potential risks associated with your activity and follow guidance issued by your organisation’s Health and Safety team.

Sporting and fitness activities

Make sure everyone involved is fully briefed on the risks, fitness requirements, special equipment and clothing needed. Also discuss what is acceptable behaviour during an activity.

First aid

Make sure you have adequate cover for a large activity. For more information and help, contact the following organisations:

• St John Ambulance sja.org.uk

• St Andrew’s First Aid (Scotland) firstaid.org.uk

• British Red Cross redcrossfirstaidtraining.co.uk

• The Purple Guide thepurpleguide.co.uk

38 39

Page 21: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

Insurance

You are protected by The Children’s Society’s Public Liability Insurance in respect of claims made against you by the public, for negligent injury or damage to property, for activities organised to raise money for The Children’s Society.

If you would like a copy of our public liability certificate, please contact our Supporter Care team on 0300 303 7000. Most typical fundraising activities are covered, but if you would like to check, contact the team.

Lotteries and raffles

A lottery licence is not needed for a raffle which takes place at a one off non-commercial event, provided you follow these conditions:

1. The tickets are only sold at the event where the draw will be taking place

2. The draw takes place on the same day and at the same venue as the event

3. No more than £500 is spent on prizes

You will need to register your raffle with your local council if:

1. You intend to sell tickets before the activity, or do not fulfil the conditions stated above

2. Sales from the tickets are above £20,000

For further advice, call your local council’s switchboard and ask for their licensing office. You may also find it helpful to take a look at the Gambling Commission’s guide online at gamblingcommission.gov.uk or speak to them on 0121 230 6666.

4140

Page 22: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

These include:

• posters and flyers to promote your

activity

• invitations to invite people to your activity

• headed paper for writing letters about your fundraising

• collection envelopes

• sponsorship forms

• paying-in forms

• balloons

• t-shirts

• stickers

• collection tins and buckets.

Please note that this isn’t a comprehensive list of all of our resources and what we have available may change over time.

For a full list of resources, and to order what you need, visit our webshop at shop.childrenssociety.org.uk, or give us a call on 0300 30 30 555.

Although all of our resources are free, and we do want you to use them to raise awareness of The Children’s Society, please only order the amount of stock you will use.

We also have a number of other resources such as games, quizzes and make-your-own bunting which you can download at childrenssociety.org.uk/fundraising

Resources The Children’s Society has a wide range of free, branded resources you can use when fundraising.

The ambition of The Children’s Society is to create a country where all children are free from disadvantage.

We know this will take a lot of hard work and resources, but it is possible with the support of generous people like you.

Thank you so much for fundraising to change the lives of children and young people who desperately need our help.

You are fantastic.

‘You are all change makers and people of transformation. Thank you.’ Matthew Reed, Chief Executive

4342

Page 23: Your guide to fundraising - The Children's Society · 2017-11-28 · However you want to fundraise, a good starting point is choosing an activity that suits you and your personality.

The Children’s SocietyEdward Rudolf HouseMargery StreetLondon WC1X 0JL

t: 0300 303 7000 e: [email protected] Charity Registration No. 221124 R

FD0

99

e/0

715