Pedalling for Pubs raises over £1mn for charities, plus more fundraising event news

Melanie May | 14 June 2024 | News

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A round up of fundraising event news, from RNLI becoming the Royal Cornwall Show’s charity of the year, to Pedalling for Pubs raising over £1mn for two charities through its cycling challenges.

RNLI named as Royal Cornwall Show charity of the year

The RNLI has been selected as the charity of the year at the 2024 Royal Cornwall Show, which takes place from Thursday 6 June-Saturday 8 June

The RNLI will be present across the three days of the Royal Cornwall Show on its stand, where the charity will be fundraising, spreading awareness of how people can get involved, sharing water safety advice and performing water safety demonstrations in the countryside area. The RNLI will also have a central display in the flower tent and a fun competition for local schools to create a hanging basket flower arrangement in a decommissioned lifeboat helmet and create their own floral welly. The stand will also have a range of RNLI200 branded clothing and accessories which will be able to purchase across the three days.

Aberdeen Autism Charity raises £80k at annual dinner

Autism & Neurodiversity North Scotland’s (A-ND) annual dinner was back for a second year in May, raising £80,000. The Aberdeen-based support charity welcomed guests to Aberdeen’s Union Kirk for the sold-out Think Different Dinner, organised and managed by A-ND’s event and PR partners ThinkPR Scotland, with all money raised contributing towards the expansion of A-ND’s services in the north of Scotland including aims for growth within key locations into the highlands.

Attendees were joined by special guests, Luke and Tom Stoltman – the ‘World’s Strongest Brothers’ and Highland natives themselves. Diagnosed as autistic at the age of five, 3x World’s Strongest Man winner Tom Stoltman has since become an ambassador for autism and neurodiversity, educating and empowering others like himself on what he describes as his superpower. The annual dinner is the charity’s largest fundraising event. Since last year’s dinner, A-ND has increased the number of people it supports from 150 to 236 whilst launching its Binky the Sensory Bus initiative: a double-decker bus offering a unique and specialised mobile sensory environment.

Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall break record fundraising total

This year’s week of fundraising concerts for Teenage Cancer Trust at London’s Royal Albert Hall over 18to 24 March marked the first time in their 24-year history that the charity received over £2million from the annual fundraising shows. This achievement marks the highest amount ever secured for the series. They were also the last week of shows to see Roger Daltry, frontman of The Who and founder/curator of the annual concert series, at the helm.

All seven nights sold out including the annual comedy night headlined by Kevin Bridges. The curtain came down with an Ovation to Roger Daltrey from Eddie Vedder, Paul Weller, Kelly Jones and Robert Plant all of whom have supported Daltry from the start.

Sixth-former founded charity launches inaugural fundraising event

Sixth-former founded charity, Blue Dragon Events is aiming to raise £100,000 for Vietnamese-based charity Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, with its first inaugural fundraising event, a seven-and-a-half-kilometer race, taking place on 7 July at Ludgrove School in Berkshire. Set up by school friends, Arthur Gordon-Harris and Tissot Do in affiliation with Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, Blue Dragon Events was founded in 2023, following a trip to Hanoi where they saw the charity’s work firsthand.

The event will also include an array of food trucks and vendors, alongside a well-stocked bar and charity raffle, with proceeds contributing toward the £100,000 goal.

Black Heroes Foundation event to raise funds to bring Windrush play to the stage

The Black Heroes Foundation has announced their return to the Clapham Grand for a fundraising event on Wednesday 19 June, as part of the Wandsworth Arts Fringe Festival and Windrush Day celebrations. The event promises an evening of inspiring performances and community spirit, with performances by acclaimed artists Carroll Thompson, Zeeteah, Johnny Orlando, and more. The event aims to raise funds to bring the play, The Story of Flip Fraser: A Windrush Story, to the stage. This new play will delve into the life and legacy of Flip Fraser, a pivotal figure in the Windrush story and Black British history.

The play will take place at the Shaw Theatre, London in October. It narrates the captivating journey of Flip’s early days in Jamaica to his influential role in London where he moved aged 16 and eventually became the pioneering editor of The Voice newspaper and the creator of ‘Black Heroes in the Hall of Fame.’

Pedalling for Pubs raises over £1mn for Licenced Trade Charity & Only a Pavement Away

Organisers of the charity bike ride, Pedalling for Pubs and UK ride Pedalling 2 Pubs, have announced that thanks to the combined efforts of campaign sponsors, organisers and riders, over £1mn has been raised for the Licenced Trade Charity and Only a Pavement Away since the initiatives founding three years ago. 

The campaign’s debut ride took place in Jordan two years ago, and last year’s journey took place in Sri Lanka. This year, 28 riders from across the sector tackled a 400km cycle across rugged terrain in Kenya, from Nairobi to the Masai Mara from the 17-21 March. The 2024 Pedalling 2 Pubs ride has raised £320k, while this month, 50 leaders from the hospitality industry took on the Pedalling 2 Pubs challenge for its second year, conquering 230km across North Devon’s rolling hills from 16-8 May, adding £85k to the fundraising pot, to date.

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.