A-Z OF FUNDRAISING
A
Abseiling – Want to conquer your fear of heights? You could ask for sponsors and abseil a landmark like the Spinnaker Tower.
Arts and crafts – Knitting, crocheting, painting, jewellery making, or even embroidery. You can get creative, make something, sell it and donate the profits.
B
Bake sale – From brownies to cookies, to cupcakes, or even banana bread. You can sell your creations in your workplace or local community and donate the profits.
Bingo – Knock at the door, it’s number 4! Prepare a bingo event and ask for a donation for entry. You can even make it themed to tailor your event to your audience.
C
Coffee Mornings – Coffee mornings are a great way to catch up with friends. Ask for a donation to match the price of a coffee. You could pair this with other events like book clubs or bake sales.
Concert – Organise a concert featuring local musicians, singers, bands or talented friends and family. Sell tickets, ask performers to donate their time and see if local businesses can help with the venue.
D
Dress-down day – Ditch the uniforms and ask everyone to pay £5 to come into your workplace in casual dress. You could also have a theme, such as everyone wearing the colour blue.
Disco or danceathon – Get your dancing shoes on and see who can last the longest on the dance floor. Ask your participants to gain sponsorships or charge an entry fee to raise money.
E
Easter – The bank holiday weekend is a great time for fundraising. You can play classic games such as an Easter egg hunt or pin the tail on the bunny. Just ask for a donation to take part.
Exercise Challenge – Swimming, walking, running or cycling. You can set yourself a goal and ask people to sponsor you.
F
Film night – Create your own cinema experience and ask for a donation for entry. You can even organise a tuck shop so everyone has their favourite snacks.
Football – Whether you do a tournament, 5-a-side match, or even a season sweepstake, just ask for a donation to play.
G
Give it up – Give up something you love for charity. You can give up things like chocolate, social media, or take part in events like Dry January and get people to sponsor you.
Game Night – You can host a traditional board game night, or even play PC or console games. Raise money by asking anyone who takes part for a donation.
H
Halloween – Organise a spooktacular event to raise money for the IMI. From fancy-dress parties to scary film nights, you can get as creative as you want with a Halloween event.
Hiking – Lace up your walking boots and get people to donate to a sponsored hike. Whether you’re climbing Snowdon or hiking a local trek, challenge yourself for a good cause.
I
In memory – Honour someone special by raising funds in their memory. Whether this is through a tribute page, a dedicated event, or a personal challenge, celebrate their life while helping to create a better future for others.
Ironman – If you fancy a challenge, try and take on an Ironman triathlon and ask people to sponsor you as you run, swim and cycle to raise money for the IMI.
J
Jailbreak – In this traditional hitchhiking challenge, set yourself a time limit and see how far away you can get. Ask for sponsors while you complete this challenge.
Jumble sale – Sell your unwanted items. You can go to a car boot sale or try online methods like eBay or Vinted. You can then donate what you make to our charitable causes.
K
Karaoke – Everyone has their signature song, so grab a microphone and organise a donate-to-sing karaoke event.
Knitting – Use your knitting or crocheting skills to create some items to sell. You can then donate the profits to our charitable causes.
L
Livestream – Charity streaming is a great way to engage a wide audience with your hobbies while fundraising. Whether it’s gaming, baking, fitness or crafting, you can stream whatever you want and showcase your talent.
Loose Change – Ask your friends, family, and colleagues to donate their loose change. It all adds up!
M
Marathons – There are marathon events across the globe, so lace up your running shoes and get training for a sponsored run. Contact us if you would like to take part in the local Southampton Marathon.
Mountain Climbs – From the Three Peaks Challenge to Kilimanjaro, there is a mountain for everyone. This is a great way to challenge yourself while asking people to sponsor you.
N
New Year – Never stick to your New Year’s resolutions? Challenge yourself by asking for sponsors for a year-long fundraiser. This is a great way to kick a bad habit, challenge yourself, or make a positive change in your life.
Name the Teddy – A competitive guessing game! Charge per entry and get people to guess the name of the teddy bear.
O
Office Fundraising – Office fundraisers are a good way to boost teamwork and morale. You can get as creative as you’d like – from an office Olympics to coffee mornings to a dress-down day. Whatever you decide to do, you can have fun in your office whilst raising money for the IMI.
Open Mic Night – Let anyone take the stage at an open mic night. Charge people an entry fee whether they listen to the talent or participate themselves, and donate the profits.
P
Poker night* – Run your own Casino Royale and donate the winnings to the IMI.
Pancake Day – Pancakes are fun and easy to make – You can sell pancakes for a donation, hold a pancake flipping contest, or hold a pancake race.
Q
Quiz – Everyone is guaranteed to have fun with this fundraising classic. Charge a donation to enter the quiz and get creative with your quiz rounds. You can give prizes to the winners and donate the rest.
Quiet (sponsored silence) – Challenge people to stay quiet for a certain amount of time and donate every time you make a noise.
R
Raffle* – Ask your friends, family, and local businesses to donate prizes and raffle them off in this fundraising classic. People can buy raffle tickets to win, with all profits being donated to the IMI.
Running – Whether you do a couch-to-5K or run an ultra marathon, you can set your own personal challenge and get people to sponsor you along the way.
S
Skydive – If you’re looking for an adrenaline-inducing fundraising activity, then take to the sky with a sponsored skydive.
Sports day – A sports day is a great event for everyone. You can do this at your school, a local park, or even in your back garden.
T
Tournaments – You can make almost anything into a tournament, from sports such as netball, football, or rugby to gaming. If you have a group of competitive friends and family, get creative, make your own tournament and ask people for sponsors.
Treasure Hunt – Organise a treasure hunt in your local community. Make sure you include any local landmarks or your favourite hangout spots. Charge a donation for entry.
U
University Challenge – Challenge your rival university to a university challenge competition. You can charge a donation fee to take part or to come along and watch.
Uniform-free day – A fundraiser that is perfect for schools or offices. Swap your uniform for casual clothes, fancy dress, or a theme.
V
Valentine’s Day – This is a perfect time to fundraise, from speed-dating events to a Valentine’s Day ball. Whatever the event, theme it with love hearts and ask for donations.
Variety show – Put on a variety show featuring music, dancing, comedy, or any hidden talents, and charge an entry fee to raise money.
W
Waxing – A fundraising classic that will provide a good insight into how much your friends are willing to pay to hear you say “ouch”!
Walking – Whether you commit to 10,000 steps a day, or walk from Lands End to John O’Groats, set a challenge that works for you.
X
Xmas – Christmas is a great time for fundraising. You can run events such as a Santa’s grotto, wrap gifts, carol sing, or sell Christmas cards. You can put your own festive twist on many of our fundraising classics.
Xtreme challenge – take fundraising to the extreme with an adventurous or unusual challenge such as ultra marathons, wing walking, or bungee jumping.
Y
Yoga – Offer a yoga class where you can ask for donations for entry into the class.
Year-long – Take on a 365-day challenge. Whether you give something up, take on a new fitness challenge, or do something different every month, people will be happy to sponsor you.
Z
Zumba – Organise a Zumba party in person or online. Have fun while you work out and ask for donations to take part.
Zip line – Take on a thrilling zip-line challenge and ask friends and family to sponsor you for the experience.
* If you are organising an event that involves gambling, please read the rules and regulations on the Gambling Commission website: gamblingcommission.gov.uk