Fundraise

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Fundraise

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Here are some fundraising ideas that you may want to pursue or help organise.

Cake sales

It is great fun to hold a cake sale, and always popular. King's College Hospital Limb Reconstruction Trust's Karen Sherris and Debbie Bond raised an impressive £761.41 with a cake and brac sale at King's College Hospital on 2 December 2009.

If you want to organise a cake sale, you will need the following:

permission from the venue for holding the sale
some willing volunteers and willing bakers. Children can bake too
plenty of produce for sale
one or two tables large enough to hold all your produce
plastic tablecloths
cling film
paper plates
small food bags
paper serviettes
carrier bags for people buying whole cakes
money tin (preferably with a lock) and float
some advertising posters (A4 size is adequate) to place strategically around the venue.

Arrive early to make sure you are ready when your first customers arrive. Why not use this as an opportunity to try out new recipes? And why not invite other Friends so you can buddy up and help raise awareness of the charity?

Make sure you comply with any regulations. Come prepared by reading up on food safety and hygiene regulation.

Holding a raffle

Raffles are a good way of raising awareness, but as fairly large sums of money can change hands, there are certain protocols you need to follow:

Under the Lotteries and Amusement Act 1976, you need a lottery licence from the local council where the raffle is taking place.
Tickets have to be printed by a professional printing company; they need to be numbered, list the chosen charity and the price of the ticket. Tickets must include the date of the draw.
Cash prizes are not recommended and have tighter laws, so it is a good idea to have chosen prizes.

Make even more money by asking local shops and businesses to donate the prizes.

Once you have your tickets, you can share them out among family, friends, work colleagues, neighbours and other Friends.

The raffle needs to be drawn in an open place - and you can pick a random participant to draw the winning ticket/s.

Other ideas

Hold a dinner party and charge your friends to attend, or ask them to make a donation to the charity.

Run to raise funds: pick you race from a host held throughout the country throughout the year, and get fit in the bargain! You don't have to do the London Marathon, unless you want to of course. We have an entry for 2011, so watch out for some Friends runners in the crowds.

Involve the children, with a sponsored silence...

Organise a carol concert, such as the one at Downe Church in Kent on 12 December 2009 which raised more than £2,000, or even a talent show. Know any Simon Cowell look-alikes?

Shake your collection tin at various hot spots - sports events, supermarkets and conferences. But make you sure you follow whatever regulations are in force there for charity collectors.