A-Z of Fundraising Ideas

Whatever event you are planning, individualised sponsorship forms, T- shirts and display material are available on request. Setting up a JustGiving page on the web for your event makes it easier for you to secure and collect sponsorship and Gift Aid is automatically claimed for the charity when a sponsor is a UK taxpayer who agrees to it being applied.

A’s

ABSEIL: The more adventurous the location better. Abseiling down a tower block or office block such as Canary Wharf.

ACTIVITIES DAY: Organise an activity day where a variety of people can take part in a range of activities. Can involve families or different classes or teams.

AEROBICS: Organise a sponsored aerobathon.

AFTERNOON TEA: Arrange an afternoon tea party where you can hold a raffle, Auction, Tombola, games and if possible some musical accompaniment. Tea at Three (T@3) is a popular hospice fundraiser.

AIR MILES: Collect Air Miles and collate them together. Either raffle or auction the Air Miles.

ALUMINIUM COLLECTION: Collect Aluminium cans at work and home and sell the tins to recycling companies.

AS NEW SALE: An “As New Sale” is really another name for a posh jumble sale. The event can be held in an evening and organised to resemble a shop rather than a jumble sale. This needs time and commitment for sorting the clothes, and where necessary wash and ironing them previous to the sale might enhance the price.

AUCTIONS: Original auction of items that are donated or sold on behalf of the donor and you take a percentage of the fee or sale of the item

AUCTION OF PROMISES: A variation of the auction theme, where you auction off promises made by people or local business. These can be anything from being chauffeur driven for a day to meal for two or Theatre tickets.

B’s

BAD HAIR DAY

BAD TIE DAY

BARBEQUE: Always a winner, especially in the summer. Couple this with games such as cricket or rounders or even some music to make a really great atmosphere.

BARN DANCE: Traditional country music that is becoming more and more popular. There are many companies who offer a good caller and lively music. Offer some food and plenty of cider and the evening is bound to go with a swing.

BEAT THE GOALIE: Traditional fairground game where the competitor tries to score past a goalkeeper. Score a goal and win a prize.

BEER FESTIVAL: Beer festivals can be as large or small an event as you wish. The event can last an evening or be continued throughout a week or even over a month. Obviously the larger the event, the more money you can potentially raise. The festival could involve beers from around the world, which could incorporate various themes from different countries. Do not forget to cater for the non-beer drinker and ensure there is enough entertainment to keep everyone amused. Check what the licensing laws permit!

BINGO: An evening of Bingo is great fun and a great way to raise money. Or you can run a regular morning session over a few weeks.

BOARD GAMES EVENING: Organise an evening of board games, charge per game or an entrance fee. Possibly have prizes for the winners (Monopoly Champion or Mastermind of Trivia)

BOOK SALE: Selling second hand books is a great for people to get rid of old books and for you to raise money. If you can’t sell them all, many book dealers will purchase the left over bulk stock to relieve you of all of the books.

BURNS NIGHT: A Scottish based theme evening, with Haggis, Nepes and Tatties and Scottish dancing. Charge entry and hold a Scottish based raffle.

C’s

CAKE STALL: Traditional stall to sell donated cakes and other delicatessen delights.  Works best at a larger event such as a fair or coffee morning. Please let the charity know if you are doing a cake stall so they can advise you on health and safety regulations for selling perishable goods to the public.

CAR TREASURE HUNT: Rather than a traditional treasure hunt around the local town, this is a treasure hunt where you drive from clue to clue and find the treasure!  A real challenge and good fun as well as a sound fund raiser.

CAR WASH: Set up a car wash service.  This is best run from a local car park (supermarkets are ideal) where you wash your clients car whilst they do your shopping! You could even make it a fancy dress car wash to add a bit of originality 

CAROL SINGING: A traditional method of raising funds during the Christmas period.  In order to collect from private residence you may require a license and carol singing in large groups is much safer and you gain a much better response.

CASINO EVENING: There are many companies who offer the facilities to set up a casino in a hall or local meeting place.  You can organise a range of games including blackjack, roulette and other card games.  Alternatively, you can organise and supply the games yourself.

CHRISTMAS DRAW: One of the best times to hold a draw for any organisation is at Christmas.  Firstly, most companies increase sales towards Christmas, the more sales the better the prizes!  Secondly, during the season of giving and goodwill, it is much easier to sell draw tickets. 

COFFEE MORNING: By having an open house and organising other stalls such as a bring and buy or a cake stall and raffles you can make a substantial amount from a very social event!

COLLECTING TINS: Probably the oldest method of raising funds. 

COOKERY DEMONSTRATION: Inviting a chef from your local restaurant to let you in on the secrets of the trade is a real crowd puller.  You may even be able to attract some of the newfound celebrities or hold your very own "Master Chef".

COPPER COLLECTION: A lot of people have their own small collection of copper coins, why not persuade people to depart with their copper collections and donate it to your fund. 

CRICKET MATCH: Hold a cricket match and afternoon activity.  Challenge your County team to a match or invite some star cricketers to join in your efforts.  With the introduction of Kwik Cricket in schools you may be able to organise a competition based on this new form of the game.

CROSSWORD COMPETITION: Holding a crossword competition as a sideshow is a relatively new concept.  Produce a very large crossword on a board and get people to pay to answer a clue.  Hidden behind each number is a raffle ticket that could win a prize!

D’s

DANCE: Dances can take many forms.  One favourite dance is the old-fashioned tea dance, an opportunity to have a leisurely afternoon's dancing and entertainment.  (Perhaps for the older generation!) Sell refreshments such as cakes and scones as an added money-spinner.

DARTS MATCH: Put out the challenge to all the pub teams in the area to compete in a tournament for cash prizes, or a barrel of beer! 

DIRECT MAIL (WASTE): Collect all of your direct mail for recycling. Due to the paper being of better quality, you are often able to receive a better recycle value than you get for newspaper. The average household gets twelve direct mail letters a week, which can mean making money from junk.

E’s

EATING MARATHON: A marathon can take many forms and an eating marathon is no exception.  You may want to rise to your challenge of eating a marathon of one food, (maybe cold baked beans,) or seeing how long you can eat for!  A visit to a local burger bar and trying to eat everything on the menu is always a marathon that burger lovers enjoy!  Sponsorship from restaurants may help cover costs for this one.          

EYEBROWS: Shave them off for a fee or sponsorship. They will grow back – eventually!

F’s

FANCY DRESS: Kids love it. Adults love it!  Dressing up in fancy dress can add fun to any event, and holding a fancy dress competition for the children is an excellent money-spinner for any event.

FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT: Organise a football tournament for local clubs or companies to participate in.  Organise a range of stalls for the participants and spectators to spend their money to help raise your funds.

FOREIGN COINS: Many people now travel abroad and although banks are willing to exchange notes, they are not interested in coins.  Ask friends, family and colleagues to gather their coins left over from their holidays and give it to you. Once you have a substantial amount, change it into sterling to aid your fundraising.

FULL BODY WAX (for men!): A painful but often immensely successful way of raising funds!

G’s

GARAGE SALE: A garage sale is a good way to raise some quick money. Clear out the garage, shed and attic of all of your unwanted goods. It is very important to check that any member of your family or housemates no longer needs the items you are selling before you sell it!  

GARDEN PARTY: An open garden or garden party is a very sociable occasion to raise funds.  Either sell ticket to a strawberries and cream garden party or hold an open garden to encourage people to visit the garden and make a donation.

GARDENING: Offer a service for gardening.  This may be as simple as lawn cutting or patio cleaning or you may be able to provide a more complete service.

GO KART GRAND PRIX: Organise a Go Kart Grand Prix at the local track.  Many of the indoor circuits assist with groups that are fund raising and some will even organise the whole event for you! 

GUESS THE ???: Traditional fair game where the competitor guesses the number of sweets in a jar, or the name of the teddy bear etc.  The list is endless as to what can be guessed and the person who guesses correctly or closest wins the prize.

H’s

HALLOWEEN PARTY: Plenty of traditional party games can be played including bobbing apples and trick or treats.

HEAD SHAVE: Just for the brave!  A very quick, but often immensely successful way of raising funds.

HOUSEHOLD SALE: From the same stable as the garage sale this can either be ran from home or you can organise it in a local hall - a jumble sale without the clothes!

I’s

IRONING: Everybody hates it! Charge people to do their ironing. Charge per item or per bundle.

IT'S A KNOCKOUT: A revival of the 80's game show where teams compete in the most ridiculous games in the most ridiculous costumes.  This will make you laugh and raise a few eyebrows as well as funds! Perfect as a family fun-day for your company or sports club.

J’s

JAIL BREAK: Although escaping from jail is not recommended, it is a great way to raise funds.  Being dumped in the middle of nowhere and having to get back to your headquarters with no money or mode of transport. Organise it as a competition between teams, charge an entry fee and offer prizes for the first to get back.

K’s

KARAOKE: Hire a machine and a room and a well stocked bar and you will be amazed how little encouragement people need to be like their favourite pop star. 

KIT TENT: Duchess of Kent House Charity helps man the kit tent at the Reading Half Marathon, and is always looking for volunteers to help.

L’s 

LOLLY POP RAIDS: No one can say no to a lolly pop! Dish them out to your work colleagues and ask for a donation - £1 a pop!

M’s

MARATHONS: The traditional marathon is a great event to get sponsored to complete the 26 mile race, although there are many variations on the marathon and you can make it almost anything you want. Reading has a very popular Half Marathon held in March each year

MILE OF PENNIES: In a local area, try to make a mile of pennies.  Get people to lay their pennies next to each other until they stretch out to a distance of a mile.

MOBILE PHONES: Give us your unwanted old mobile phones to us and we can get money for recycling them.

MUFTI DAY: Mufti days are greatly accepted by pupils in order for them not to wear their school uniform for the day.  You can also widen this to the workplace where people change from their normal work-wear to an alternative for the day.

N’s

NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS: Many people make them, but how many keep them?  Challenge people to get sponsored to keep their resolutions for a little longer than normal!

O’s

OPEN GARDEN: Offer to open your garden to visitors and request a donation from visitors.  If you don’t have a garden, get in touch with your local gardening club and see if you can organise it using their members. You can also organise refreshments and sales of plants and vegetables.

P’s

PAINTBALL COMPETITION: This game is professionally run and you can organise challenges to raise funds where people contribute to your funds.

PANCAKE RACES: Shrove Tuesday is full of Pancake races through many towns.  Why not organise pancake races at work.  Ask for sponsorship from teams and donations from spectators.

PARACHUTE JUMP: Another idea for the daredevils of fund raising!  This method of fund raising is definitely not for the feint hearted and most funds are raised through individual sponsorship.

PARTIES: Parties, parties and more parties.  There are so many variations of parties that every party can have a different theme.  Many parties can be organised in order to raise funds either by charging an entrance fee or by having other activities within the party.

PETROL TOKENS: Collect petrol tokens and trade them in for gifts that you can then use as raffle prizes.

PLANT A TREE: A "plant a tree" scheme can raise funds for almost any organisation by getting people to sponsor a tree.  

PROMOTIONAL GIFTS: Sell promotional items that have your Charity or organisations logo on them.  

PUB GAMES EVENING: Organise a championship of traditional pub games.  There are many different ways in which this can be organised, although the key games to include are darts, skittles, shove ha'penny, dominoes and card games.

Q’s

QUIZZES: Everyone loves a quiz and they are great fund raisers.  Holding a quiz on a regular weekly basis in your local pub or community centre or sports club will keep a consistent flow of funds coming in.  Many public houses are willing to support this type of event as it also brings them custom as well.

R’s

RACE NIGHT: Race nights bring a whole new meaning to horse racing.  Many companies organise the whole evening or just supply the props.  The "punter" places their bet on a horse and after all the bets are place, the race is run on a large screen.  The people who bet on the winning horse take their winnings and another races starts.  There are normally around eight races a night and there are now variations on the theme including greyhound racing and motor sports.

 RAFFLES: One of the oldest, one of the best and easiest to organise fund raising ideas.  Always a winner and always a trusted addition to any event. Please consult the charity before trying to organise a raffle as there are various laws and legislation which should be adhered to.

RE-CYCLING COLLECTIONS:         There are now a great many items that can be collected and sold on for re-cycling.  By offering a collection service for these re-cycleable products can also boost your funds.

S’s

SCAVENGER HUNT: A scavenger hunt is enjoyed by both young and old.  It is a form of treasure hunt where each team is given a list of items that they have to find and collect.  The winning team is the one who collects the most.

SCRAP METAL: Collect scrap metal and sell it to a scrap metal dealer or re-cycling plant.  You will be amazed how much you can raise through other peoples junk and scrap!

SEASONAL DRAW: Large events can normally always command a draw for either a major or cash prize.  It is best if you can run draws with the seasons to clearly distinguish the draws.

SILVER COLLECTIONS: A collection of people's silver coins will very quickly boost your funds.

SKYDIVING: For those people who have one the parachute jump, this is the next step.  Sky diving is free fall and as exhilarating as parachuting.  The main revenue for this is through sponsorship. 

SLIMMING COMPETITION: Slimming has probably become the number one hobby!   Why not organise a competition to see who can slim the most, or get sponsored for every pound lost! Try to get a prize donated, which relates to the competition (example: a day at a health farm). 

SPORTS COMPETITIONS: Almost any sport can be turned into a fund raising event.  Organising competitions and tournaments can support your fund raising activities.  You can also include raffles and refreshments.

STATIONARY CYCLE:       The logistics of cycling to Paris are quite complex although you can easily cover the distance with a group of people cycling on stationary cycles.  By measuring the mileage, you can aim to cover the distance to Paris without leaving your home town!

SUNFLOWER GROWING: People purchase sunflower seeds and plant them. The person who grows the highest sunflower wins a prize. The sunflower is the symbol of the national hospice movement.

SWIM-A-THON: Aquatic people many take up a challenge to complete a swim-a-thon and wither swim for a set period of time or try to swim a certain distance.

T’s

TEN PIN BOWLING: Ten pin bowling challenges often raise lots of money for Charities and many centres will have special rates and evenings for Charity events. 

TOMBOLA: Traditional fair game where the competitor picks a raffle ticket out of a barrel and tries to match it with the number attached to a prize. 

TOY SALE: Organising a toy sale is an excellent fund raising method.  Children grow out of toys very quickly and if you organise it prior to Christmas you are onto a real winner.

TREASURE HUNT: Teams compete against each other to complete a course to find the treasure by following set clues.  

U’s

UNWANTED PRESENTS: After the Christmas period you often see adverts for unwanted presents.  Why not offer a place for everyone to sell their unwanted's and you take a commission of the sale price or get people to donate for sale.

V’s

VICTORIAN EVENING:    Organise a themed evenings. A Victorian evening is one that proves to be the most successful.  It is possible to recreate almost any era in order to raise funds.  

W’s

WASTE PAPER COLLECTION: Collect waste paper, mainly newspapers and magazines for re-cycling.

WATER SPORTS: Almost all water sports can aid fund raising, whether by tuition, sponsorship or just for fun!

WAXING: A chance for the boys to see what the girls go through! Wax chest and or legs and get sponsored.

WEIGHT OF THE CAKE: Traditional fair game where the competitor tries to guess the weight of the cake, the winner of the cake is the person who guesses the correct weight.

WINE AND CHEESE EVENING: A very popular way to raise funds.  Encourage local supermarkets to donate the cheese and wine as a promotional opportunity. You can even combine it as a wine tasting opportunity.

WINE TASTING: Many wine companies offer tasting sessions for local organisations and they can assist in your fund raising efforts.  Make sure that you receive a commission for every bottle sold and organise additional raffles. 

WISHING WELL: If there is a well or a pool of water that you can see the bottom there is a fascination about throwing money into the pool!  

X’s

XMAS EVENING: How about holding an Xmas evening!  From carols and party antics through to Christmas Pudding and mince pies.  Do not forget to invite Santa and his reindeer and rather than being traditional, why not have Christmas in July!

XMAS HAMPERS: Raffling Christmas hampers are an excellent way of raising money.  In addition, you do not have to keep the hamper to perishables and food you can always include toys and gifts.

Y’s

YARD OF ALE:    Challenge people to drink a yard of ale.  The fastest drinker wins a prize!

YELLOW:  Yellow is the hospice movement’s colour, so how about a Go Yellow Day in the office or school? People pay £1 for the privilege of wearing yellow and a prize is given to the best yellow outfit.

Z’s

ZODIAC EVENING: Why not look to the stars to help raise your funds!  Holding a Zodiac evening that offers information on star signs and astrological information is an entertaining way to raise funds. Enlist the help of the local astrological club and even get a guest speaker to give a talk about the stars