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Asking for donations

Submitted by Danielle Walker on Thu, 2016-08-25 12:39

Donations are one of the most common ways for MS Society groups to raise funds. There are four main types of donations you might ask for:

  1. Regular donations
  2. Celebration donations
  3. In memory donations and legacies
  4. Business donations

Regular donations

You can ask long-term supporters or donors you know well to donate regularly by Direct Debit. They can either set up a Direct Debit online or call our Supporter Care Team for support. Make sure they include your MS Society group name when setting up their Direct Debit.

  1. Set up a Direct Debit online page
  2. Contact the Supporter Care Team

One-off donations

Celebration donations

Making donations to charity is becoming a popular alternative to giving presents for birthdays, anniversaries and weddings. Celebration donations can be made by setting up a Justgiving page or by calling our Supporter Care Team.

  1. Find out more about celebration donations
  2. Learn how to set up a Justgiving account for your group
  3. Contact the Supporter Care Team

To help encourage donations instead of gifts, you could give MS Society pin badges as wedding favours, suggest party games and raffle ideas, or give Gift Aid donation envelopes to be sent with invites.

  1. Order MS Society merchandise from our online shop

In memory donations and legacies

Some people choose to collect money at a loved one’s funeral. Whilst this is a sensitive topic, you can try the following to make sure you don’t miss out on donations people might be very pleased to give:

  • Ask your local funeral director to stock leaflets about your MS Society group in case anyone asks them about supporting local MS charities
  • Thank people for donations of this kind in your newsletter to raise awareness of this option - but don’t forget to ask their permission first
  1. See our guidance on MS Society newsletters
  2. Download a personal information consent form

What to do if you receive a legacy payment

If you receive a legacy payment (money left in a will), you must forward it to MS National Centre (or the national office in Edinburgh if you’re in Scotland) for legal and auditing reasons.

  1. Contact your national office

Legacy spending plans

Donations left for specific projects or groups will need a spending plan as this is also an audit requirement. Your Local Networks Officer will support you to develop a spending plan to enable the funds to be released.

  1. Contact your Local Networks Officer

Any questions?

If you have questions about asking for donations, contact the member of staff who supports you.

  1. Go to fundraising support

  2. Back to developing fundraising relationships

Topic: 
Fundraising