Register for the Big Give Christmas Challenge and double your donations this winter!

Want to add some much-needed coffers to the fundraising pot this Christmas? Sign your charity up for ‘The Big Give Christmas Challenge’.

What is the Christmas Challenge?

For the unfamiliar, The Christmas Challenge is the UK’s biggest, annual match-funded campaign. Run by The Big Give (a match-funding platform), it offers supporters of participating charities the opportunity to double their donations over a seven-day period.

How does it work?

During challenge week (this year it’s taking place from November 28 – December 5), every donation made by a member of the public to a Big Give charity partner is matched by a Big Give ‘Champion’ (high-net-worth individuals, foundations, corporates, philanthropists, statutory bodies, corporates, etc.) This year’s Champions include The Reed Foundation, The Childhood Trust, Candis, Coles Medlock Foundation, and the Julia & Hans Rausing Trust.

Essentially, a £50 donation from a supporter becomes £100 for you (minus a small processing fee).

Sounds good, right? All you have to do is sign up to take part and promote the Challenge to your supporters. (Big Give has a suite of resources to help with this).

Campaign Impact

Last year, 79,000 members of the public donated to the campaign, raising £28.6m for 1,021 charities. £82.3m of this went to small charities (with an income of £1m or less).

The Big Give released some figures on the campaign’s impact in their recent ‘Celebrating 15 years of impact’ report:

• 76% of participating charities say the Christmas Challenge’s match-funding results in more donations being made compared to a non-match-funded campaign

• 65% of charities say the Christmas Challenge’s match-funding results in bigger donations being made compared to a non-match-funded campaign.

• 56% of charities say their existing supporters give more through the Big Give Christmas Challenge than they would normally donate.

• 94% of the charities received online donations from new donors who had not previously given to their charity.

• 74% of the charities believe that the Christmas Challenge has helped to raise their profile.

Key things to note

If you want to sign up and double your Christmas donations, be sure to do so before July 7.

Eligibility criteria

Charities of all sizes are invited to apply. To be eligible, you:

• must be a UK-registered charity with a Charity Commission number or tax-exempt status and an annual income of at least £25,000.

• need to register your charity on BigGive.org

The Application process

When applying, you’ll need to outline a specific project you’re looking to raise funds for and set a monetary target. Funds received during the campaign will be restricted to that project until you hit your target. If you receive donations after hitting it, they’ll be unrestricted Champion pledges make up part of the match funding pot. You’ll need to secure a minimum of £1k to be eligible for Champion funding.

Further information on eligibility and the application process can be found here.

Need a fundraiser to manage your funding applications? We can help. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 to get started!

Celebrating small charity week

When most people are asked to name a charity, they’ll mention the big, household names whose adverts they see on TV or in their favourite weekly magazines.

While these charities do amazing work - fighting cancer, heart disease or dementia - they only make up 3% of the charity sector. The other 97% is made up of small charities (with an income of under £ 1 million); and micro charities (those with an income of under £10,000 per annum).

Despite the prevalence of small charities, they receive just 20% of the UK’s charitable giving.

But what they’re able to achieve on a shoestring budget is nothing short of incredible.

In honour of Small Charity Week, we’re going to shine a spotlight on three small charities that are making a mighty difference.

Stem4

Stem4 is an award-winning organisation that promotes positive mental health in teenagers. They do this through the provision of mental health education, resilience strategies and early intervention.

Despite its modest budget, the charity provides mental health support to 100,000 young people each year. It also provides mental health education to 60,000 young people, their parents and carers, teachers, GPs and school nurses.

The charity has also developed four, award-winning, evidence-based mental health mobile apps:

• Calm Harm focuses on managing the urge to self-harm

• Clear Fear provides teens with a range of tools to manage anxiety

• Move Mood helps teenagers manage depression

• Combined Minds helps families and friends provide support to teenagers

The apps have been downloaded three million times, across 227 countries and territories.

Stephens and George Charitable Trust

In 2012, 40% of children in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, were found to be functionally illiterate upon leaving primary school. In response, the Welsh education inspectorate placed the borough council under “special measures”.

That same year, Stephens and George Print Group set up a charitable trust to help tackle the area’s education and literacy challenges.

Following consultation with schools, social services and other community providers, the trust put together a three-year strategy incorporating a range of initiatives.

As a result, the Stephens and George Charitable Trust enrolled 120 reading support volunteers to go into schools and read to children with complex needs. They also put in place the infrastructure to distribute 10,000 donated books to children who need them each year.

The charity also runs Charity Baby Bookworm sessions (an initiative that encourages parents to read to their children before they reach school age).

The charity secured funding from several grantmakers for these projects, but it’s also taken steps to increase its earned income. Notably, it used a community asset transfer to take over the Dowlais Community Centre. This now acts as a community hub and revenue source with a gym, cafe and hall hire. The charity also opened and runs Merthyr Tydfil’s only bookshop.

Kumon Y’all

Divisions in local communities can be deep-seated, particularly when it comes to race and religion.

For one predominantly Muslim community in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, two events shone a harsh spotlight on how the Saville Town area was divided: the neighbourhood was home of the UK’s youngest-ever suicide bomber; and the scene of a violent stabbing of a young person by members of a far-right group.

These events spurred local charity Kumon Y’all to take action to tackle the rise of extremism among young people, and challenge misunderstandings between Muslim and non-Muslim communities. They asked young members of the Dewsbury community to come up with an event to bring everyone together. The most popular idea was a football tournament.

The charity proceeded to contact various religious groups, and, in 2013, the community enjoyed its first ‘Let’s Unite’ tournament.

The annual event has grown significantly over the years. In 2022, 40 youth teams and 12 adult teams took part, and the action was watched by 5,000 spectators.

Since the event was introduced, incidents of hate crime in the area have fallen significantly. As a result, the charity has been approached by neighbouring cities to roll out the model in their communities.

Be a part of small charity week!

Want your events/webinars listed on the small charity week website? You can register them here. The page will be open until 18th June.

Free and discounted resources for charities

Been scouring the internet for a budget-friendly CRM system or impacting reporting tool? In need of urgent legal advice or IT support but can’t make the numbers work?

Did you know that, as a charity, you can get all these things (and more) for free/at a reduced rate?

In the current climate, every penny counts, so we’ve put together a handy list of free/low-cost resources you can draw on to make your budget stretch further.

Office furniture

Need some office furniture to accommodate your expanding fundraising team?

Contact Collecteco. They partner with companies to donate unwanted/surplus office furniture, equipment, and materials to good causes across the UK, enabling you to furnish your office for free.

All you need to do is send them a wish list of the items you need via this form and they’ll let you know when a match becomes available. When it does, they can also arrange low-cost delivery.

IT support & software

Want to upgrade your website but lacking in internal IT resources? Check out the Charity IT Association (CITA).

CITA is an easy-to-use platform that matches charities to IT professionals looking to donate their time and expertise to the third sector.

Typical projects include migrating to a new software system, e-mail setup and management, and IT software or hardware selection and deployment.

The service is free for charities with an income of £50k or less. There’s a small charge for larger charities.

You can find out more and register your charity here.

Legal advice

Legal advice costs a fortune … unless you know where to look.

Enter LawWorks: a charity that connects volunteer solicitors with people in need of legal advice, who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay, and with the charities that support them.

Their Not-for-Profits Programme provides free legal advice to small charities on a wide range of legal issues, to support the continuation and expansion of their services.

They can help with one-off legal issues (like drafting a contract, reviewing a lease, updating a constitution, or clarifying rights in a commercial dispute); or on a longer-term basis, for example, to carry out a review of your organisation's documents, identify potential legal issues, and/or be a first port of call for legal queries).

They also have a range of legal resources on their website that answer some of the frequently asked questions they receive from charities.

Find out more on their website.

Management consultancy

Need a hand with your charity strategy, business plan, financial management, governance, or impact reporting? The Cranfield Trust can help.

The charity provides pro bono consultancy and management support to charities, through their network of skilled volunteer consultants and advisers.

They help to build resilient and sustainable charities using their Journey to Excellence framework, offering free support in four key management areas: Leadership and Strategic Direction, People Management, Financial Management and Sustainability, and Performance and Impact.

They also have a library of free webinars that cover topics such as charity business planning and strategy, bid writing, and financial forecasting.

Check you’re eligible for support and drop them an email here.

Looking to expand your fundraising team? We can help. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 or email info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get started.

Disability in the Workplace: Joanna’s Story

A recent study by healthcare provider Bupa found that two in five (43%) employees with a less visible disability haven’t disclosed it to their employer.

This got us thinking. Half the team at Bamboo have a disability. Have they felt comfortable enough to talk about their disabilities at work?

We asked them to find out.

Seeing as its Clubfoot Awareness Month, we’re kicking off with our Partnerships & Operations Director,  Joanna.

What disability do you have?

I was born with Congenital talipes equinovarus (CTE), also known as club foot. Essentially this means, when I was born, my feet and ankles were turned inwards. My left foot was affected more than my right, but I had treatment on both feet to realign them. This consisted of a combination of The Ponseti Method (a technique used to straighten the feet using manipulation and stretching) and operations. 

I also have Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), a condition in which extra bone grows along one or both of the bones that form the hip joint, giving the bones an irregular shape. Because they don’t fit together properly, the bones rub against each other when I move.

Over time, this friction has damaged my joints, causing hip stiffness and pain. It’s also limited my mobility.  

How does your disability affect you?

I was pretty active during my childhood and teenage years, but I had to put up with excruciating leg spasms. I was also very susceptible to falls - I managed to fracture my Thema bone when I tripped up a kerb.

With regards to the club foot, in 2012, I had to have a major operation on my ankle as it started to collapse to the side. I had metal bolts inserted to realign it. Unsurprisingly, this put me out of action for a while.

Prior to the operation, I was on crutches for months - whizzing about London attending client meetings. It wasn’t ideal, so I knew it needed to be done.

As a result of my condition, my feet are different sizes. I wear size 7/8 on my left and a 5 on my right. It was a nightmare finding shoes until I came across a Facebook group called Jo’s Odd Shoes. I now get fabulous, odd shoes for the cost of postage!

How do you manage your FIA?

I take Naproxen, (an anti-inflammatory), every day, for pain and swelling.

I also self-medicate with cold water swimming. I swim with a national group, The Bluetits. I can honestly say it’s the best medicine!

Have you disclosed your disabilities to employers?

I haven’t discussed my disabilities with previous employers. I was concerned they’d think I was incompetent. I have always overcompensated as a result.

Over the years, my job as a recruitment manager has required me to attend lots of external meetings. Although the travel caused me a lot of pain, I was determined to do it. So, I used to travel around London on crutches. As a result, I’ve got trapped nerves in one of my elbows, which is extremely painful. I’ve lost feeling in part of my hand.

Have you had to take time off work because of your condition? If so, have your colleagues and manager been understanding?

I was unable to walk for two months after an ankle operation. Initially, my employer was unsympathetic. Even though I was still working (and incidentally, was their highest biller) they said they weren’t going to pay me. However, after I told the CEO the operation was the result of a long-term disability, his attitude changed.  

Have you ever been discriminated against because of your disability?

I sometimes struggle on public transport. Because my disability isn't visible, people don't realise I need a seat.

Even if I have my crutches, people are often too busy on their phones to look up!

What can employers do to support people with the same condition as you at work?

It's about being accommodating. I need to be active, but not too active.

At Bamboo, I have ‘Friday wellness time’. I can use it to go for a swim, walk on my treadmill, or attend a physio session.

It’s also about asking employees what they need. For example, I have a walking pad that enables me to keep my hip joint moving. If I sit at my desk all day, my hip gets "locked" which leads to back pain.

What advice would you give someone with your condition when applying for jobs? Should they be open about the condition?

You've got to feel comfortable telling the company you’re joining. The onus is on them to make sure they’re open about being a disability-positive employer.

New Charity Interns project offers internships for over-50’s

The number of people who are economically inactive has risen steeply since the beginning of the pandemic – largely driven by droves of over 50s quitting the workforce.

A new report from the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy select committee blames the exodus on “ageist” organisations that have outdated policies and recruitment processes.

This rings true for Maya Bhose, Founder of Charity Interns – a project that will explore new routes into third sector employment for the over 50’s.

In an article in the ‘i paper’, Maya said, “at the age of 61, I am struggling to get a job. I have great skills, and I’ve held very senior roles in the commercial sector but still, somehow, I am struggling. In the past year, I have applied for over 40 jobs, and I have received just one interview. My CV hasn’t changed. My experience hasn’t changed. I am simply 61”.

Rather than accept the status quo, Maya turned her frustration into a solution. She continued, “the main motivation behind Charity Interns is to stop the waste of talent that is happening across all sectors and do something practical to make older people visible to employers, help them extend their careers, and allow charities to benefit from their skills, knowledge and unique perspectives.”

The project, which is being incubated by the NCVO, aims to help address the sector’s ongoing recruitment and skills shortage by tapping into the 50+ market - an often overlookedand under-utilised talent pool, while countering negative stereotypes around older workers.

The initial pilot programme will run for six months, from October 2023, and will see up to six candidates aged 50 and over, placed on a six-month paid internship with a charity.

The project will formally launch on 29 June 2023 with a live-streamed event. Internship applications for the pilot programme will also open on this date.

Opinion

Internships are generally seen as pathways for younger people to enter work or retrain. However, older workers also need supported routes into the sector. And there’s an abundance of over 50’s with relevant transferable skills and knowledge Looking for meaningful employment.

Charity Interns is a win-win.  It will enable over-50’s to gain valuable third-sector experience (without the worry of age being a barrier), and charities will fill vacancies and benefit from the sharing of ideas across co-generational teams.

Get involved!

The Alzheimer’s Society has been announced as the first of four internship partners. But Charity Interns is looking for three further organisations to take part.

To express your interest in hiring a skilled intern, or to find out more about the project,  visit the Charity Interns website or email maya@charityinterns.com.

Looking for a skilled fundraiser to complement your team? We can help. We’ve got talented candidates of every age looking for their next third-sector challenge. Contact us on 020 3750 3111 or info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get started.