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We often associate fundraising with organised events, sponsored challenges, and wide-scale donation collections, but we forget that there are lots of different ways to fundraise and help charities. Here is a list of 4 easy ways to fundraise that are simple, yet effective.

1. Legacy gift

Leaving a legacy gift to a charity in your Will allows you to help and support charities and keep their services running for years to come.

If you wish to leave a legacy gift to a charity in your Will, there are several ways you can do so:

• Leave a pecuniary gift

Donate a fixed sum of money to a charity in your Will. It is a good idea to review pecuniary gifts regularly as their value may be lessened by inflation.

• Leave a residuary gift

Leave a percentage of your estate to a charity. Unlike a pecuniary gift, your donation won’t lose value over time.

• Leave a specific gift

Donate specific assets to a charity in your Will such as personal possessions, property, or shares. Describe the item as accurately as possible to avoid any ambiguity.

Do you want to change lives by leaving a legacy gift to Shawmind in your Will? By doing so, you will be helping to fund our work improving the mental health of the next generation. In return we will cover the cost of drafting your standard Will.

2. Shop using Amazon Smile

Amazon Smile is a donation programme operated by Amazon that lets customers enjoy the same wide selection of products, low prices, and convenient shopping features as on Amazon. The difference is that when you shop on Amazon Smile, Amazon will donate 0.5% of the net purchase price (excluding VAT, returns and shipping fees) to the eligible charitable organisation of your choice – at no cost to you. Currently, Amazon Smile has donated £14.2 million to various charities. Just search for “Shawmind” on the Amazon Smile website to start donating to us with your next Amazon shop.

3. Donate using round-ups of your small change

You can support your favourite charity through small acts of kindness by donating pennies from your daily purchases – all through the safe and secure Pledjar mobile app. To donate to Shawmind using Pledjar, simply use the code SMF001 when setting the app up.

4. Volunteer your time

Volunteers are the backbone of charity organisations. Without volunteers providing frontline service, fundraising, events, publicity, and campaign efforts, many charities would be unable to cope.

Not only is volunteering incredibly valuable to charities, but it is also a fun and easy way to explore your interests and passions. Doing charity volunteer work that you find meaningful and interesting can be a relaxing, energising escape from your day-to-day routine of work, school, or family commitments. Volunteering also provides you with renewed creativity, motivation, and vision that can carry over into your personal and professional life.

At Shawmind, we are currently recruiting volunteers to help in our Breathe spaces in Nottinghamshire and our WhatsApp support. By becoming a Shawmind volunteer you will be supporting people in your community when they need it most. Shawmind relies on volunteers to be able to offer our local services, and therefore even a commitment of one hour a week can make a big difference. All our volunteers receive free mental health training and will receive a written reference if requested.