What are the best ways to raise money for charities?

Charities exist to plug the gaps where government spending is missing.  They couldn’t do all their good work and help as many people and animals as they do without financial support from caring members of the public. 

People raise money for charities in many different ways.  A large portion of many charities’ income comes from bequests made in peoples’ Wills.  When a person writes a Will, they can choose to leave a gift (of an amount of money, or perhaps some property) or a percentage of their estate (the value of everything they leave behind when they die) to a charity or charities of their choice.  These are called charitable legacies, and they are free of Inheritance Tax. 

The current rate of Inheritance Tax is currently £325,000 and, subject to a few exceptions, anything you own above that amount at the time of your death is taxed at 40%.  Some people, usually those who own just above the threshold, say in their Will that if they own over the Inheritance Tax threshold at the time of their death, then anything above that amount will be given to a charity or charities.  That way, the charity gets the money rather than the Chancellor.

But there are many ways you can raise money for charity when you are alive too!  Some people make a small (or large) monthly donation by direct debit, which really adds up for the charity.  Others do one-off fundraising activities.  Fundraising ideas could include those which are wild and wacky, like getting people to sponsor them to sit in a bath of baked beans, or to shave their heads.  Or they can be arduous and rewarding, such as raising sponsorship for running a race, or climbing a mountain.  

One of the easiest and most pleasant fundraising idea, though, is probably a coffee morning with friends, or baking cakes for friends and family to buy, with all money raised being sent to the charity.  Coffee mornings work by asking people to come along to your house for the morning, providing them with tea/coffee and cake/biscuits and a gossip, and in return they agree to put some money in the pot (usually an agreed amount of, say £5 each, or you could leave it to their discretion – most people prefer being asked for a set amount, though).