Organising a charity event is a great way to raise money for a cause such as Greater Change whilst enjoying time with friends, family and the community. In fact, they're so much fun that it's easy to forget that there's an important reason behind them. Read this article to understand why and how you should organise your next charity event! 

What is a charity event? 

A charity event is an opportunity for you to raise money and awareness of your cause by hosting an event that benefits people in need.

Fundraising events are a great way to get the community involved with your organisation, as well as help, raise awareness about your cause and its importance in the community. By creating a fun environment where guests can enjoy themselves while learning about your work, you'll be able to achieve all of these goals at once!

You will need to consider: 

What is the purpose of a charity event? When planning a charity event, it's essential to know the purpose of your event. The following list outlines some common types of purposes for hosting a charity event:

• First, raise money for the charity so they can keep doing their good work. 
• Raise awareness of an issue such as homelessness and provide information on how we can tackle it. 
• Celebrate a special occasion, such as an anniversary of the charity being founded or having reached a specific milestone in their work. 
• Celebrate someone who has achieved something great. For instance, a community member has undertaken a challenge such as a marathon to raise money for a charity. 
• Celebrate and raise awareness of an important day or time in history (e.g. World Homelessness Day). 

How much does it cost to run a charity event?

The cost of running a charity event depends on the type of event you are hosting. The most common types of events include:

• An auction
• A dinner or meal for the guests
• A raffle, in which people pay money to enter and then win prizes usually donated by local businesses or individuals. You can then use ticket funds to support your charity's cause.

Where should I host a charity event?

When choosing a location for charity events, remember to consider the accessibility of the venue hire. For example, a charity event should be accessible for all people, so choose a venue that has good parking and is not too far from people's homes.

What counts as a charity event?

A charity event is any kind of gathering to raise funds for a worthy cause. It can be a fundraising event, gala, dinner or concert; it could also be a sporting event like a golf tournament or silent auction. A charity event might include all these elements and more.

The key to organising a successful charity event is to find out what your target audience wants to do in order to make it as successful as possible. Charity events are a great way to raise money for your cause while enjoying time with friends, family and the community.

Organising a charity run!

Donorbox has put together a really helpful guide on organising a charity run. Here are just a few ideas you can use as a checklist when organising your event: 

1. Choosing a location for the Charity Run

Consider accessibility, length of the run, and the course's safety. For example, is there a lot of traffic? You also need to look at the legal side of the location. Do you need a permit? What insurance will you need to take out? 

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1. Determining the Resources Needed

For example, staff, donation boxes, water tables and first aid boxes. 

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1. Setting SMART Goals For Charity Run

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable/Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. Consider how many participants you need to raise the amount of money you hope to raise. How much money are you willing to put into the event? How many donations do you need to raise to reach your fundraising goal? 

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1. Promoting Your Charity Run & Finding Participants

Use social media and local media such as radio stations and newspapers to promptly get the word out about your event!

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1. Taking Registrations for Your Charity Run

Consider using a mobile-optimised system to take registrations to make the process easier for yourself, the organiser, and the participants. 

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1. Accepting Online Donations

An effective fundraising platform also makes it easy to secure donations. Make sure that your website is set up to accept donations.

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1. Communicating With Your Participants

Keep in touch with participants in the run-up to your charity run. This helps to keep them excited and enthusiastic right up to the big day. Otherwise, interest can wane if the run takes months after people register.

If your organisation has been collecting registration details, staying in touch is easy. Send them regular emails with tips for training and fundraising.

For example, are you attracting participants who don't live locally? Offer them tips on where to stay and what to see while they're in town. You could even provide them with a training plan to follow.

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1. What to Do Afterwards

Keep in touch and thank all participants. As well as participants and donors, send a thank you email to the volunteers who helped ensure the day went smoothly.

How do I host a charity event for Greater Change? 

Founded in 2018, Greater Change supports people who, with some funding, can make a long-term positive change. We help everyone who is homeless or at immediate risk of becoming homeless.

The charities that we partner with refer people to us who would benefit from our help. We then encourage support workers to build relationships with homeless individuals, ask them what they want and need to return to a home, and create a clear action plan and a savings target to achieve this.

Savings targets are typically for housing deposits, ID, and training courses. However, we do not stipulate what the funding can be used for but take a common-sense approach to fund things which the people we are helping and their support workers demonstrate will help them back into homes and thrive there: people who are homeless have control over the process.

Offering this budget shows trust, encourages engagement, and differs from typical offers of generic help. We then fundraise for their savings target. Once the target is reached, the support worker's charity purchases the saving goal directly to ensure accountability and transparency. As a result, we have now helped over 500 clients out of homelessness and into long-term stability. 

You can help us help another 500 people out of homelessness by organising a charity event to raise awareness of Greater Change and funds to help us achieve our mission. Don't hesitate to get in touch with enquiries@greaterchange.co.uk to let us know about the event you would like to host! 

Conclusion

There's so much to consider when planning a charity event, but it can be hugely rewarding too. It's important that you think about your audience and what they're expecting from the event.

Consider asking for feedback or doing market research beforehand to understand how you can improve next time – this will also help you with the cost of running an event and planning your budget. Please consider hosting an event to help Greater Change!

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