9 great events raising funds for UK charities
Melanie May | 7 June 2021 | News
With in-person events starting again, this event round up features a mixture of physical and virtual charity fundraising events, from the Annual Alex’s Wish Golf Day to the NHS Big Tea.
NHS Big Tea
The NHS Big Tea takes place on 5 July. Everyone can take part by raising a mug or holding their own virtual or physical tea party at 3pm on that day or at any time that suits them on or around that date, and raising funds for either NHS Charities Together, or their local hospital NHS trust. GOOD agency has been appointed by NHS Charities Together, the umbrella charity for over 240 NHS charities nationwide, to deliver the fundraising and celebratory ‘Big Tea’ event campaign for 2021, while the event is being backed by TV personality and A&E doctor Dr. Alex George, and supported by Morrisons, which will be encouraging its customers and staff to take part, and Flowercard, with an exclusive, limited-edition range of tea-themed cards and tea cups filled with blooms, with 100% of profits from the sale of the collection going to NHS Charities Together.
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WOVEN festival & The Kirkwood
The bi-annual WOVEN festival, which runs from the 5-27 June, funded by Kirklees Council, has chosen to make The Kirkwood its charity partner this year. To kickstart the festival, a group of knitters and crocheters from across the district will be unveiling a rainbow-coloured yarn installation at Huddersfield Train Station. Named ‘The Big Rainbow Knit’, the installation will be hung from the pillars at the entrance of the station. So far this year, £5,000 has been raised for The Kirkwood in sponsorships pledged by those taking part in the Big Rainbow Knit. Those knitting or crocheting squares for the installation can raise funds for The Kirkwood by applying for a fundraising pack through The Kirkwood website and asking sponsors to support their cause as they weave, all in the name of charity.
Lord’s Taverners Wales Ian Spratling Memorial Golf Day
The Lord’s Taverners Wales has announced that its annual Ian Spratling Memorial Golf Day will return in the Autumn. Taking place on Thursday 16 September after a year’s hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it will see teams of varying handicaps from across South Wales compete for the charity trophy at the Royal Porthcawl Golf Club. The event is held annually in memory of ex-Chairman of the Lord’s Taverners Wales Ian Spratling, who passed away in 2001, and raises thousands of pounds for disabled and disadvantaged children.
St Giles Hospice Cycle Spring
Cyclists from across Staffordshire joined in the Cycle Spring in aid of St Giles Hospice on 23 May. The ride was the first organised charity event the hospice had been able to run in more than a year due to Covid-19 and this year’s event featured Covid-compliant measures, including staggered starting times, to ensure the safety of all riders. Starting at 7.30am, 430 riders in socially distanced groups of up to six people tackled one of three new routes of varying difficulty through the Staffordshire countryside. Organisers hope the 2021 event will hit a record Cycle Spring fundraising total, with more than £20,000 pledged so far this year to help fund hospice care. The next ride, Cycle Autumn, is set to take place on Sunday 5 September.
Moore Barlow Silicon Cup Regatta
The annual Moore Barlow Silicon Cup Regatta is back this September, raising money for charities that help young people and sailing fans. Sailing enthusiasts and first-timers to the sport will be taking to the water once again for a charity regatta in The Solent, following the cancellation of last year’s event. Up to 30 boats will battle it out for two days of races between Port Solent, Hampshire and Cowes on the Isle of Wight. The event, which is run by tech experts and sees boats entered by teams from international companies such as Dell, Fujitsu, Microsoft and Salesforce, has been held annually since 2000, except for 2020. Over the past two decades the regatta has raised more than £1m for charity. The proceeds of sponsoring a boat via yacht charter company, Sunsail, along with money raised from the auction, will be donated to Dreams Come True, the Andrew Simpson Foundation, Greig City Academy, and a fourth charity as nominated by the winning regatta team (which records the fastest overall times across the two-day event).
PAWA Challenge 2021
Focusing on education for teenage girls in Asia with low-income backgrounds, London-based charity PAWA launched a 40-day fundraising event at the end of May. The challenge is to complete 10,500km – which is the distance between PAWA’s projects – in 40 days to raise an overall total of £20,000. Joiners can walk, run, cycle and get their friends and family to support by donating. Joiners can do as much or as little as they want and can do it individually or as a team.
Challenging MND Big Sponsored Silence
Challenging MND has unveiled its latest initiative to raise money for people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Monday 21 June is Global Motor Neurone Disease Awareness Day, and to mark the day and highlight that 80% of people living with MND lose the ability to speak, Challenging MND is asking UK schools to sign up for ‘The Big Sponsored Silence.’ It hopes that schools – primary and secondary – across the nation will take part. The silence will last for the duration of the morning break time. All money raised will go towards helping people living with MND fulfil dreams and create lasting memories with loved ones, organised through the charity – Challenging MND. The deadline for signing up is Friday 18 June.
Blenheim Palace Triathlon & Cancer Research UK
LimeLight Sports Club has announced Cancer Research UK as the official charity partner for the Blenheim Palace Triathlon. Triathlon participants will be able to support the charity through fundraising while taking on their fitness challenge. A team of 300 places is available in this sold-out event exclusively through Cancer Research UK with money raised by participants going to help fund the charity’s work. The Blenheim Palace Triathlon takes place on Saturday 11 – Sunday 12 September 2021. There are two distances available: Sprint and Super Sprint. The Sprint distance consisting of a 750m swim, a 19.8km cycle and a 5.4km run. The Super Sprint distance consisting of a 400m swim, 13.3km cycle and a 2.9km run. LimeLight Sports Club has partnered with JustGiving across its portfolio of 7 major sporting events: ASICS London 10K, London Triathlon, London Duathlon, Blenheim Palace Triathlon, Etape Caledonia, Hackney Half marathon and Oxford Half marathon.
Annual Alex’s Wish Golf Day
The gradual easing of Covid-19 measure has meant that local parent-led charity, Alex’s Wish, has begun planning its fundraising calendar again. Taking place on 23 September is its Annual Alex’s Wish Golf Day, at Rothley Park Golf Course. To help raise funds, alongside its headline sponsor the charity also offers a variety of other sponsorship opportunities, including its golf day hole sponsorship, with 18 holes to sponsor for £100 each. In return sponsors get their logo displayed prominently at the hole, put marketing material into the event’s golfers goodie bags and recognition on Alex’s Wish website with a link to their company.
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.