Six Ways to Fundraise For Charity

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Fundraising for charity can be both challenging and rewarding. The methods described here were used by my partner and I to raise in excess of £2,700 for an animal charity.

1. Supermarket Bag Packing Bag packing in supermarkets can be very lucrative way to raise funds for your charity. To arrange a bag packing event approach the manager of the supermarket and ask for permission. They may want to see proof,  so it is a good idea to have a letter from your charity authorising you to collect money on their behalf. Once you have gained permission and a date from the supermarket you will need to find some helpers. Ideally, you should have enough helpers to cover most of the tills. On the day of the event, everyone should dress smartly and wear T-shirts  that identifies them with the charity you are collecting for. Always be polite to the customers and ask if they would like help with their packing.   A successful bag packing day can raise hundreds of Pounds for your charity.

2. Car Boot Sales In the UK car boot sales are very popular on the weekends and are held all over the country. Get your friend to donate their unwanted items to you. When you have collected enough stuff to fill your car, do a car boot sale. It is important to arrive at the venue as early as possible in order to secure a good pitch and have time to set up stall before the buyers arrive. Ask the organisers of the car boot sale what would be a good time to arrive. You will need to pay a fee for the pitch but usually this is not very much. Some car boot sales waver the fee for charities, but you will need to take proof with you that actually raising money for charity. Take enough refreshments to see you through the day.

3. Bingo Many clubs and pubs hold regular Bingo nights to raise money for charity. Find one locally that does and ask them if they can schedule a Bingo night for your charity. They put on the event, so there is no need for you to worry about the ins and outs of Bingo. Your job is to get people to the event by inviting friends and family. You should also publicise the event by putting up posters on local notice boards etc. It is also common to incorporate a raffle into the event, and you will need some prizes for this. Ask friends and family as well as local businesses for prize donations.

4. Raffle Ask your local club or pub to hold a raffle for you. Get your prizes donated by friends, family and local businesses. Run the raffle for a few weeks to get as many tickets sold as possible. On the night of the draw make sure everyone has a ticket. After the draw thank everyone for their support.

5. Guess the Number This is a fun one that can generate more funds than you might think. Get a large sweet jar and fill it with sweets of different sizes. Make sure to keep a count of how many are in the jar. Write down the total on a piece of paper and keep it in a sealed envelope. Put the jar in your local club or pub and charge people so much a guess. Run this for a few weeks. The person who is closest to the correct answer wins the jar of sweets. You don’t have to use sweets, pickled onions work just as well. 

6. Head Shave Now we are getting drastic but this can raise quite a lot of funds. If you know a male who has a full head of hair and, preferably a beard, persuade them to have their head shaved. Bribe them if necessary. Arrange a time, date and venue for the event and start asking people for sponsorship. For some strange reason, the victim’s closest friends are the ones that give the most money. You will also need to find someone to do the shaving. Ask your local barber if he would be willing to do it. The event should be held in a public place as this is a spectator event.  

The ideas above are only a handful of ways that you can raise money. If you do use any of the suggestions above, remember to have fun doing it.

write by Isidore