Fund Raising

In cat welfare, finances determine the amount of activity which can be undertaken. It is worth trying to find some one who will deal with this aspect of the work.

Everybody concerned with fund raising knows the two traditional sources, the jumble sale and the coffee morning. These play a very useful role and can be developed into a social occasion and a means of gathering more supporters. Those who have experience of fund raising will know that they appear simple but often are not.

The success of a jumble sale depends on having the right things to sell at the right price at the right place at the right time. Often the choice of place is limited to the church hall or a village hall, but in towns there is normally a wider choice and so its worth doing some research first. Size can some times create a problem; small halls tend to give a crowded atmosphere which might put buyers off, whilst large halls with few stalls give the impression the event isn't going well. If there is space to spare it can be offered to other organisations which would welcome the chance to have a stall. There is sometimes a fear that 'outsider's stalls' will detract from the funds raised by the sponsoring organisation, but this is not true; all buying is on impulse, and the more stalls there are, the more people are likely to spend money. You should also consider having a stall at someone else's event.

The nature of the goods for sale will depends on the area and the people willing to help. It is usually possible to get people to make cakes or jam, whilst other can gather the jumble sale items.

It is worth thinking about creating a unusual feature, for example a stall with items all one colour, such as a stall piled with blue stationery, kitchen towels, toilet rolls, china, soaps, materials and so on, will attract a lot of attention.

You should select a good day for your event, check for any competing local events and check for any major national events such as the FA Cup Final!

The running of the even is mainly down to common sense. Get as much publicity as possible through notices in shop windows, announcements on local radio, leaflets though letterboxes and so on. As for admission fees, it's probably not necessary in rural areas, but will help keep a check on numbers in urban areas. Pricing should be done bearing in mind people will be there for a bargain. Refreshments are a good idea, and will attract the passer by who might stay to purchase.

Make sure you keep a close eye on the stock and takings. Many people like the idea of aprons with large pockets which solve the problem of keeping the cash in a safe place and keeping an eye on the goods at the same time.

Coffee mornings and wine and cheese parties can be held in a hall but are better held in someone's house. These also need some organisation, and can widen the supporters as well s raising money. Apart from the usual sale stalls and cakes and other hand made items, it is usual to have a raffle or tombola.

Which of these fund raising activities is most appropriate depends on the type of event and the number and nature of the prizes available. For a coffee morning a few boxes of chocolates, a bottle of wine and a few cakes will support the sale of about 100 tickets, but a raffle will need a lot more prizes. You need to make sure that the sale of tickets covers the cost of the prizes.

A tombola requires a lot of prizes of moderate value. Then number each prize, in a five, ten, fifteen sequence, and to put the number of tickets equivalent to the highest numbered prize in  container. The tickets are then offered for sale and all numbers ending in 5 or 0 win a prize. It's essential to give buyers a good prospect of winning.

Two smaller alternatives to the jumble sale are the garage sale and car boot sale. The garage sale comes from America where to dispose of unwanted items by displaying them in the garage on Sunday morning. having publicised the sale before hand. The car boot sale is usually arranged by an organisation which rents a location and then sells spaces, with the right to display and sell a car full of goods.

There are many other ways of raising money and all ideas should be attempted. Some have done well with sponsored events, such as marathons, cycling, fun runs, swimming and even loosing weight.

Having collected money it is important that is be accounted for in a meticulous manner. A good way is to open an account with National Girobank. This is free and cash can be paid in at any Post Office and cheques can be credited by sending them to the head office in free post envelopes. Withdrawals of cash can be made at the Post Office and payments can be made by cheque. A statement is sent every month.