Refused donation from Ludlow bed push to fund two first responders
Melanie May | 21 September 2017 | News
The money raised from the Ludlow bed push that was refused for involving men dressed as female nurses will now be used to fund two community first responders, the League of Friends of Ludlow Hospital has announced.
£2,500 was raised by the League through this year’s annual bed push, with the intension of donating it to the hospital to pay for new equipment. However, Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust turned down this latest donation, calling the presentation of men dressed as women ‘outdated and insulting to the profession’. While The League of Friends continues to support the hospital, and has spent £324,358 on equipment for it since 2007, it will now put this £2,500 into funding two community first responders instead.
Peter Corfield, Chairman of The League of Friends of Ludlow Hospital said:
“Our aims and objectives include provision for The League to supplement the hospital service by providing facilities and equipment to improve the health welfare and comfort of the local community. Hence, when it became clear that the offer we had made to Shropcom of £2,500 raised by the bed push would not be accepted we looked for a healthcare alternative that sat outside the diktat but which would be of benefit to a wide section of the community, including the many thousands of visitors to Ludlow throughout the year.”
Controversial fundraising ideas
The Ludlow Hospital bed push is not the first time a charity fundraising idea has been met by criticism. A channel crossing on a ‘sea bike’ to raise money for a cancer charity was banned by France this summer for using an ‘unorthodox craft’, and recycling and waste disposal firm Businesswaste.co.uk is currently urging the Government to consider banning all you can eat challenges, arguing that in an age of food shortages, food banks and food waste, there is no room for the over-consumption of food as entertainment.
Mark Hall, spokesperson for BusinessWaste.co.uk said:
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“We’re living in a time of massive disparity and inequality, where so many people are using food banks to survive, that the idea of eating as much as you possibly can just for fun is incredibly insulting and ignorant.
“While some people don’t have enough to eat, we’re throwing away food on offensive challenges like these, most of which ends up as waste anyway. Almost 80% of food from these kinds of activities have been found to end up in the bin rather than going where it’s desperately needed.”
Time for change?
These recent stories highlight the disparity between what individuals can sometimes think is a fun and appropriate way to raise funds for their chosen cause, and what charities themselves may find appropriate for their organisation to be associated with. They also suggest that it may be necessary to make it clearer to the public what is and isn’t an acceptable way of raising funds for a charity or cause.
Under the Fundraising Code, charities are entitled to refuse donations if they believe that there is a legal or moral obligation to do so such as they believe it will directly lead to a loss of support or reputation, or will cause harm to beneficiaries. The Code also offers guidance on how to respond to donations deemed to be unacceptable.
Image: 2014’s bed push for Ludlow Hospital in the Shropshire Star
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.