Fundraising for CAPS CAPS relies entirely on donations to fund our work on behalf of captive animals. Fundraising can be a great way for supporters to help our vital work, and it can a great way of meeting like minded people and having a fun time!
So here's how you can help raise funds for our campaigns. The list isn't exhaustive so use your imagination to come up with new ideas.
STREET COLLECTIONS This is probably one of the most popular ways of raising funds in the community. Organising You need a licence from the council to hold a street collection and also need to be over 16 years of age. Contact your local council direct to request a permit; a simple phone call to your local town hall will put you through to the right department. Decide when and where you want to hold the collection. Saturdays are busiest but may have been booked well in advance by other charities and organisations. You will be asked which streets you want to collect on (choose the main and busiest streets in the town/city centre), and what time (maximise this by asking for 9am to 7pm - you don't have to be there all that time but it allows you to be flexible!) Shopping centres are usually privately owned so your permit will not allow you to collect there, but you could try getting permission from the manager of the centre. Once you have confirmed the location, date and time you can start
to prepare your collection. Placards can be used to convey the message of who you are and why you are collecting - either make your own or use our posters. Contact all your friends and family, and you local animal rights group and let them know you are organising a collection and would like their help. We can also write to our supporters in your area. The more people you have the more fun it will be and the more money you can raise! On the day On the day have a meeting point where you may want to set up a stall. One or two people can remain at the stall while others can go to different streets to collect. This provies a meeting point and a place where collectors can leave their tins while they have a break. Make sure every collector has a photocopy of the permit as this needs to be shown to any police or council officials, so make sure you have enough copies. Be safety aware - keep collecting tins safe. Don't carry all the tins down the street in full view. You can have collectors within site of each other and at the end of the day it is best if more than one person takes all the tins of money. After the collection Once you are back home you need to count and bag all the money. Some collectors like to know how much they have individually raised so you may want to keep a record of each tin. Obtain money bags from a bank or post office and bag the money in the correct amounts. The money can be paid direct into CAPS' account (we will provide you with full details), or you can send us a cheque. There will be some small paperwork to fill in for the council stating how much you collected. Sometimes you are required to write a letter to your local paper to inform the public how much you raised. The council will tell you if this is necessary, but it is always good to do anyway, to thank the public for their support. That's it! You will no doubt learn better ways to do a collection each time you do it, but this will hopefully guide you through your first. Don't forget to send us a photo of your collection so that we can print it in our magazine or on our website.
SPONSORED EVENTS Sponsored events are a popular way of raising money. They can also be the most fun as they often involve doing fun, stupid or dangerous things! All you need to do is choose an event, get the sponsors, do the event and collect in the money. Easy! Getting people to part with their money can be the hardest part, so you may want to get people to pay when they initially sponsor you, rather than after you have done the event. What sponsored events are there? You can be sponsored for almost everything. Perhaps a sponsored walk, run, cycle ride, crawl, hop, jump, dance, sing, hike, aerobics, spelling, cooking, read, write, dog walk, going veggie/vegan, stop smoking. Remember that more original or tricky events may possibly get more sponsors. If you can win over other people to take part, it may be more fun and, amongst you, you can raise more money. Some people may not want to take part, but may be enthusiastic to take a sponsor form to their school or family, workplace. Always be careful going door to door to get sponsors, don't send children without an adult. If you are doing the actual event in a public place, you may well need authorisation - contact CAPS or your local council for additional information. Simple sponsored events You do not have to prepare your own, just hold on until a member of your family or a work colleague are doing something (such as a parachute jumping) and ask people to sponsor that person - now that's easy! What your sponsor form needs to consist of:
Some events require additional things. You may need direction signs for the walk. You may want to provide people a certificate when they finish the event or bring in the money. You can either make your own sponsor forms or if you send us all the details we can produce one for you.
OTHER IDEAS A fair or fete You can sell things here, or have fortune tellers/tarot readers present (no need for experts!) a lucky dip, cruelty-free make-over, face-painting, food and drink (always popular), competitions, raffles, tombolas. Please note, events involving raffles and tombolas may need to be organised by someone over the age of 16 (if in doubt ask your local council). Concerts If you know a rock band, barn dance caller, jazz group, DJ, or string quartet, ask them if they will do a benefit evening for CAPS. Advertise it well in advance, and make sure that you sell sufficient tickets to cover all expenses and check in advance whether the band will need any expenses book the venue and do the publicity. This is a real good way to raise funds and have fun! Enrol members Keep a couple of membership forms with you, you never know when you may have an opportunity to get someone to join CAPS. Forms are available from us, and if you enrol ten new members you will get a free t-shirt from CAPS! Pub collection You need permission from the pub managers - either obtain this in advance, otherwise many managers are happy for you just to ask when you turn up. You will also need a collecting tin for each collector; these are available from CAPS. Over 18s only please, and never do it alone. Be safety-aware: Don't do pub collections alone and don't react to any abuse that occasionally comes from people being drunk. Staying sober yourself is probably a good idea - but the decision is up to you! Pub quizzes Convince your local pub to arrange a pub quiz on CAPS' behalf. If management understands, he or she may do everything and just give you the money for CAPS. CAPS will send a thank you letter that can be displayed in the pub. Otherwise the manager may require you to supply the quiz's questions, so be prepared and try and get help from friends, and make sure you have photocopied enough of the quiz sheets (and that you know the answers!) Street stalls These are different to street collections as you are not sending people out with collecting tins, but instead having one stall. The attitude of councils can vary and some require you to obtain permission just to have a stall. If you intend to raise money then you do need permission from the council. Stalls are an effective way of getting CAPS' message out to the public. If you have not held a street stall before, the basics are: Portable table (pasting/decorating table), petitions and clipboards, secured rubber bands, pens, leaflets, drawing pins to help secure posters, large boards with CAPS posters. Confident and enthusiastic people at the stall always helps! Catching peoples eye getting them interested will get them to come to your stall. As with all fundraising, it's more fun to have other people with you as well as to help organise and transport everything you need. You want to locate your stall where lots of people will be, remembering to think about shelter just in case it rains! Choose popular and busy locations. Don't cause an obstruction with your stall, so try and locate outside banks that may be shut, or close down shops. If you do not have permission for your stall and are asked to leave by a council official or police, then do so and make arrangements for another stall on another day. Collecting tins in shops You could ask to put collecting tins in shops, restaurants, cafés, pubs - any obvious public places where people are and where someone can keep an eye on your tin. Vegetarian and vegan health food shops, restaurants, organic cafes, anywhere you know the management may say 'yes' to your tin. You may even be able to have one at work. Remember to keep a list of where you put tins and collect the money on a regular basis and send it to CAPS. We can send a letter to the shop thanking their customers for the donations. Leave CAPS money in your will Remembering CAPS in your Will ensures we can keep fighting for animals. Contact us for details, or for a 'pledge form' (with no obligation, but it helps us plan ahead as well as thank you for remembering us in this way). Our solicitor can also offer advice.
START PLANNING! Decide what you want to do. Think realistically and think fun! Enjoy your hard work. Fundraising can be hard work, however it should give you and all your helpers some enjoyment too, as well as the satisfaction of raising much needed funds to help animals. You need a list of things that need to be done and a schedule for doing them. Make sure that you have the time, the people and the resources that you need. Look at your list and be realistic with time and ask yourself if you can achieve your goal. If you can, great! If not then maybe do something on a smaller scale. The option to work alone or with others is entirely up to you - just remember to always pick helpers carefully. You want reliable people who act timely as well as be creative, hardworking and keen; people you can get along well with are important as well. A good idea is to make sure that some of your people have access to cars, photocopiers, computers and gardens - plan what you need and all should go smoothly. Don't forget to send us a photo of your event so that we can print it in our magazine or on our website. For any help, advice and information on any areas of fundraising please contact us. A useful guide to organising street stalls, fundraising and other areas of campaigning is 'Campaign Against Cruelty'. Available for £4.99 from Vegetarian Guides, PO Box 2284, London, W1A 5UH or at www.campaignagainstcruelty.co.uk. |
There
are many ways that you can raise funds, from leafleting through
to sponsored events. Friends and family can all join in and all
your efforts will be very much appreciated. Help is at hand from
the CAPS team and fellow supporters in your local area.
