Sparks Fundraising Guide 1

YOUR FUNDRAISING GUIDE

Sparks. Registered charity no. 1003825 (England and Wales) and SC039482 (Scotland).

With your support, we can continue to fund pioneering child health research across the UK and find new treatments and cures for children who desperately need them.

Thank you!

Sparks Fundraising Guide 2

For many seriously ill children, research is their only hope. Each day, Sparks researchers are making an extraordinary impact in achieving cures and treatments for complex childhood illnesses. Since its formation in 1991, Sparks has funded more than 285 groundbreaking research projects in the UK. This incredible work is not possible without charitable support.

This fundraising guide is packed with lots of ideas to help you fundraise. Whether you’re planning to climb a mountain, host a bake sale or organise a quiz, the money you raise will help to fund life-changing research. Riley’s story is just one example of how Sparks-funded research has made an incredible difference.

Riley’s storyDave and Sarah are very aware of how research can change lives, and why it is so important. Their son, Riley, suffered oxygen deprivation during birth and was at risk of permanent brain injury. He was born without a pulse and wasn’t breathing. Dave says: “Everything went into overdrive, it was a complete shock.”

Riley was quickly transferred to a specialist team at St. Michael’s Hospital in Bristol, led by Professor of Neonatal Neuroscience, Marianne Thoresen.

Meeting the Sparks ResearcherProfessor Thoresen asked Dave and Sarah whether they would “consider allowing Riley to become the first baby in the world to receive a combined cooling and xenon gas treatment, in a bid to prevent brain damage and possible permanent disability.” The team had already established that cooling an infant’s body to 33.5 degrees for three days would give the brain a chance to recover and reduce risk of impairment. Xenon gas treatment was a great success for Riley and is the first effective treatment for brain injury in infants.

Riley is now two and a happy and healthy toddler. Dave and Sarah say: ”Riley is full of energy and sometimes a bit of a risk-taker! We’re so grateful to Professor Thoresen and Sparks for their fantastic work in cooling treatments, and for pioneering the addition of xenon gas to give babies like Riley an even better chance of survival.”

What is Xenon gas Treatment?

This breakthrough treatment involves cooling a patient’s body to 33.5 degrees for three days. The patient is then given Xenon gas to increase the protection of their brain.

Sparks Fundraising Guide 3

Kick-start your fundraisingThere are lots of ways you can fundraise for Sparks. As well as asking friends and family for donations, you can hold fundraising activities and events.

Remember to break up your fundraising into achievable goals. Assign yourself smaller targets which will then help you achieve your overall target. Starting early is key too – supporters who start early always find it easier to reach their target.

The easiest way to fundraise is online. We recommend using justgiving.com

Justgiving handy tips • Make your webpage personal. Include information about Sparks and

the event you are participating in.

• Share your story – Tell people why you’re going to all that effort. The more that people understand your motivation, the more they’re likely to sponsor you.

• Put a photo or two on your page and you could raise an additional 14%. (source: help.justgiving.com).

• Set yourself a target. People with a target on their page raise on average 46% more than those who don’t.

• Be your own first sponsor. People are more likely to give to a page that already has a first donation on it.

• Set up a JustTextGiving code and make it even easier for people to support you. This is easy to do when you set up your JustGiving page.

• Spread the word about your fundraising to your friends and family. Whether it’s sharing a Youtube clip of your running training, posting photos of your headshave or thanking everyone on social media – make sure everyone’s in the loop!

• Use your company’s communication channels (corporate newsletters, Intranet sites, message boards, etc) to publicise your fundraising event and online fundraising page.

• Change your email signature to include a link to your fundraising page. This means that every email you send promotes your web-page and catches people’s attention.

Whatever you do,

make sure you set

yourself a target!

Get in touchContact our friendly

Fundraising team. We’d love to help with your

fundraising plans.

E: info@sparks.org.uk

T: 020 7091 7750

Sparks Fundraising Guide 4

Fundraise your wayFootball or sports tournaments

You could get all your friends together and arrange 5-a-side tournaments for £5 per person. You could also do this as a FIFA tournament on the X-box or PlayStation.

Raffle

Source prizes from local businesses, or family and friends, and sell raffle tickets. You might even have some unwanted gifts around the house. You could even do a raffle as part of another fundraising event such as a quiz or bingo night.

We can send you an authorisation letter to say that we’re aware of your event and grateful to anyone who supports you with raffle or auction prizes. If you would like a letter to support your event, please email us: info@sparks.org.uk.

Quiz nights

Quiz nights are fun and can be easy to run – you may find a local pub or village hall will allow you to hold one. Remember to mention that you are raising funds for Sparks and they may not charge anything.

Curry nights and bingo nights

Get together with friends and family at your local Indian restaurant or bingo hall. Charge a little extra for the price of an average meal or game and put it towards your fundraising. This is also an opportunity to do other fundraising activities like raffles.

Cake sale

Bake some cakes and sell them at work or as part of another fundraising event, to help raise a few extra pennies.

Whatever you’re

interested in, there will be the perfect

idea for you in this guide!

Sparks Fundraising Guide 5

Fundraising at workGet your colleagues working together to raise money for Sparks and help us to fund vital children’s medical research.

Quick winsDress down

Swap your corporate attire and dress down for the day.

Sponsored challenge

Take on a sponsored stair climb or a step challenge!

Tuck shop

Have your colleagues got a sweet tooth? Create an office-style tuck shop!

Other ways to support SparksGolf day

Organise your own company golf day or attend one of our Sparks golf days: www.sparks.org.uk/event-type/golf-events.

Charity of the year

Partnering with Sparks as your chosen charity is a fantastic way to unite your company and increase employee engagement. Our friendly team are experts in delivering mutually beneficial partnerships and will help you with fundraising advice and materials along the way.

Matched giving

Don’t forget to check whether your company runs a matched giving scheme – it could be a chance for you to double your money! Please make sure you let us know if your employers are planning on matching your sponsorship.

Establish a network of charity

champions who will

help to drive fundraising

in the office and

motivate colleagues

to get involved!

Sparks Fundraising Guide 6

Fundraising guidelinesPlease follow these fundraising guidelines and ensure you adhere to all laws and health and safety regulations when organising and holding your event. Please do not conduct any door to door requests for donations or sponsorship in aid of the charity. These require a license from local authorities and we do not support this activity, other than using trained third-party organisations.

Liability

Please make it clear that you are fundraising in aid of Sparks and that your activities are not representing or organised by the charity. The charity cannot accept any responsibility for your event or anyone who participates in it. We advise that all fundraisers seek advice regarding public liability insurance if your event involves the public. There are a range of companies available to provide this.

Collection tins and buckets

All street collections or collections on public property will need to be registered with the local authority, who will issue a collection licence. Those on private property will require the permission of the property owner or manager. We will need to see a copy of this license or permission before issuing you with charity collection boxes or buckets. Under 16s are not permitted to collect money through public collections.

If you would like collection tins or buckets at your event, please feel free to give us a call and we will be happy to help.

Raffles and lotteries

Holding a raffle at your event is a great way of generating big funds with minimal costs. However, as raffles fall under strict laws relating to all lotteries, there are some cases where you may need a licence from your local council.

To make sure your raffle is legal and successful, please look at the Gambling Commission’s Guidelines: gamblingcommission.gov.uk/ PDF/quick-guides/Running-a-lottery-quick-guide.pdf

Keep it safe and legal.

Sparks Fundraising Guide 7

Your event

Ensure your event is organised efficiently and safely by completing a risk assessment and considering what insurance cover or any special licences you may need from your local council, eg a public entertainment licence or a licence to sell alcohol.

Promotion of alcohol through sponsorship, gift in kind, or competitions should be conducted in a socially responsible manner and should not be targeted at people under 18.

The Health and Safety Executive has further information on event safety at hse.gov.uk.

If selling food, contact the Environmental Health department at your local council for advice.

All promotions of your event/activity should clearly state whether all funds raised at the event will go to the charity or whether any money will be used to pay for any costs.

Child safety

Ensure that your event is properly and adequately supervised. Where children are involved, this should include providing proper adult supervision and carrying out appropriate background checks if adults are to have unsupervised access to children.

Using the charity logo

If you would like to use the charity logo to advertise your event or fundraising, please request approval from the Fundraising team by emailing info@sparks.org.uk. The charity’s ‘in aid of’ logo may be provided with guidance on its use and all materials need to be approved before printing or publishing.

Tell us about your event

The charity has a Moral and Ethical Fundraising Policy, to ensure fundraising activities do not damage the reputation or standing of the charity. To this end the charity will not accept donations that are derived from tobacco manufacture or the manufacture of weapons. Additionally, the charity will not be associated with activities that may be considered to be detrimental to children’s health and wellbeing, or may be likely to damage the reputation of the charity in some way. Please do give the Fundraising team at the charity full details about your activity and they will be on hand to support you and offer advice.

Did you know?In February 2017, we partnered with Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity to make up to £2 million available to researchers across the UK. This is the largest fund in the UK dedicated to child health research, and will benefit children nationally and around the world!

Sparks Fundraising Guide 8

FAQsWhere does my money go?

Sparks raises money to fund pioneering child health research across the UK, helping to find new treatments and cures for children and families who desperately need them. Find out more about us and the groundbreaking children’s medical research that Sparks fund at sparks.org.uk/research-type/current-research

What kind of support will I get from you?

We’ll be on hand to help you with your ideas, give you advice on event planning and send you promotional materials to help make sure your fundraising is a success and you hit your target!

I would like to share my story.

We’re always looking for personal stories to encourage other supporters to fundraise, and to raise the profile of Sparks.

Please feel free to post on our Facebook page and tag @SparksCharity on Twitter.

Please do contact us if you have a story you would like to share.

Contact us Please give our friendly team a call or email if you need any more information. We’ll be happy to help in any way that we can.

E: info@sparks.org.uk

T: 020 7091 7750

Sparks Charity 40 Bernard Street London WC1N 1LE

The Fundraising

team will support you

right from the start.

http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/quick-guides/ Running-a-lottery-quick-guide.pdf

THANK YOU

OUR VALUES

At Sparks we strive to treat families,

supporters, volunteers and anybody else

involved in fundraising for the charity with

fairness, respect, tact and dignity. We expect

anyone involved with fundraising for Sparks, or anyone representing

the Sparks Charity brand, to uphold these

values too.