# Payroll giving consortium breaks even

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2006/09/27/payroll-giving-consortium-breaks-even/
- Published: 2006-09-27T23:00:00+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

Smile a Minute (SAM), a payroll giving consortium consisting of six charities and
two other consortia, has broken even and covered all its start-up costs after launching
in 2003.
From now on, Sightsavers, Mencap, Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s
Charity, NCH, MS Society and Carers UK, will be sharing a total of at least £30,000
a month in donations. SAM is managed on behalf of the charities by Bell Fundraising,
and its members include two other consortia, Childlife and People for People.

All SAM’s donations are split eight ways. There are currently almost 10,000 donors
signed up to the scheme and it generates £360,000 per year, and is confident the
number of donors will grow.

SAM celebrated its success by encouraging more charities to develop or join payroll
giving consortia, a message echoed by the Institute of Fundraising. Those charities
who are not already involved in payroll giving often find it hard to enter the market
because there are only a handful of Professional Fundraising Organisations, and 
they do not want to represent too many charities. Consortia therefore offer a viable
alternative for charities to get involved in Payroll Giving and gain access to workplace
giving.

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Andrew Peel, Head of Organisational Giving at Sightsavers International, a founding
member of SAM, said: “The success of Smile a Minute proves that the consortium approach
is a viable way for charities of all sizes to raise money from individuals in the
workplace. However, charities must be prepared to invest time and resources in payroll
giving over the longer term to make it work for them.”

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