1. Who can use Sponsor Me?
Any individual can use Sponsor Me to
raise money for charity. There is also the option to create team
events so that you can work with others to increase the donations
in support of your cause.
All we ask is that the cause that you
are raising money for is a registered UK charity or good cause; we
have a database of thousands of UK charities and good causes that
you can donate to as soon as you've set up a Sponsor Me page. If we
do not have a charity listed, you can complete a 'Charity
Request Form' with your Sponsor Me profile page and they will be
added to our database once they have been validated.
Please note that Sponsor Me cannot be
used to raise money for an individual. All funds raised using
Sponsor Me must be paid to a registered UK charity.
Companies can also use Sponsor Me - in
fact we have an advanced Sponsor Me option for companies to use,
which can help them to get the results for their fundraising
strategies.
Companies interested in a
corporate Sponsor Me should contact us for more
information.
2. How do I create a Sponsor Me
Page?
Once you have registered for a Sponsor
Me page, you will be able to:
1. Add the
name of your event.
2. Add the
date of your event.
3. Add a
closing date for your fundraising - please note, after this date no
donations will be accepted.
4. Add an
image - this image will be shown at the top of your fundraising
page. If you do not select your own image, a standard image will
appear.
5. Add a
description about your event - what are you doing and why? This
will help to engage with your donors and encourage them to
donate.
6. Create
a thank you email that will be sent to your donors - use this as an
opportunity to highlight how their support will help you in
achieving your goals.
7. Set
what charities you are going to raise money for. You can choose up
to six charities. Use the search option to find the charity/ies
that you want to support. Please note that once you have started
fundraising you cannot change your charity selections.
8. Choose
how the money you raise will be divided between your chosen
charities - this is shown as a percentage and must add up to100%
split of your funds.
9. Add
your target fundraising amount, if you wish.
10. Show your
fundraising summary as a 'totaliser', if you wish.
11. Publicise your
efforts - via Youtube, Facebook or Twitter. Add a Google Map so
that people can find you on the day!
3. How do I edit my Sponsor Me
page?
Follow these easy steps to edit your
Sponsor Me page:
1. Once you have logged in, go to 'My
Pages'.
2. Select the page that you wish to
edit.
3. Press the 'Edit page' button. This
will take you though to the option of editing any of the
information you have added.
Please note that once you have started
fundraising you cannot change your charity selections.
4. Make your changes.
5. Press the green 'Save' button at the
bottom of your page.
4. Can I create a Sponsor Me page to
raise funds for more than one charity?
Yes you can; there are two ways you can
raise funds for multiple charities through Sponsor Me.
If you would like to support more than
one charity through one fundraising event, you can decide on a
split for the money that you have raised. You can split your money
between up to six charities - the split must add up to 100% of the
donations you receive. This is all done in your page set up
process. You can change the split or the charities using the edit
page function, but only before you start receiving donations.
You can also run multiple fundraising
events with their own pages. These can be managed through the 'My
Pages' section of your profile.
5. Can I share a Sponsor Me page?
Sponsor Me gives you the option of
creating a team event, so as the creator of a team event you can
invite other team members via email. They can choose to accept
their place in your team.
Team members share the event page and
the fundraising target, meaning that you can set bigger targets and
raise more funds for your chosen charity/ies.
6. How do I add a photo to my Sponsor Me
page?
You can add an image during the set up
of your page, described above. There is a gallery of images that
you can select from, or you can upload your own image to make your
event more personal - please note that a size limitation applies
for uploading images.
You can also change your image at any
time through the 'Edit page' function of 'My Pages'.
Of course you shouldn't upload
offensive images and take care not to infringe copyright
either.
7. How do I add a fundraising summary to
my Sponsor Me page?
You have two options for adding a
fundraising summary on your Sponsor Me page:
You can tick the 'Show totaliser' box when setting up your event
page. This will show your donations in relation to your target, as
a percentage. As donations are added to the page, your totaliser
will grow.
If you prefer, you can also leave this
box blank so instead you will just be able to see how much you have
raised so far.
8. How do I edit a comment that a donor
has left on my Sponsor Me page?
For every comment that is added to your
page, you will receive an email notification. If you are not happy
with a comment that has been added, you can use the 'Delete button'
on the 'Edit page' function in 'My Pages'.
9. Can I change the charity I am
supporting?
Before your fundraising commences you
can change your charity by following the instructions for editing
your page (listed above).
Please note: Once you have started to
fundraise you cannot alter the charity or charities you are
supporting.
If you are supporting more than one
charity you must allocate the percentage split of funds at the
start of your fundraising and you cannot amend this later.
10. What if I cannot find the charity
I want to support?
If you cannot find your chosen charity,
you can complete a 'Charity Request Form' within your Sponsor Me
profile page and they will be added to our database once they have
been validated.
You will need to know:
• Charity Name
• The Charity Commission / OSCR / HMRC registration number
• Charity Address
You will also need to add:
• Your Name
• Your Contact Telephone Number
• Your Contact Email
We can make payments to any UK based
registered charity or recognised good cause such as schools and
churches if they have registered with the HMRC, which makes them
eligible to receive tax effective donations.
11. How do I change the date of my
event on my Sponsor Me page?
In the 'Edit page' function of 'My
Pages' you will be able to change the date of your event -
this must be a date in the future. If you have entered an
incompatible date you will not be able to save your edit and will
need to enter a correct date before saving.
12. How do I cancel my Sponsor Me
page?
In the 'Edit page' function of 'My
Pages' there is a 'Delete' button, which you can use to delete an
event. Once you have confirmed the page deletion you will not be
able to retrieve it.
Any money donated to a page that you
want to cancel will be paid directly to the charity once your page
is removed. We cannot refund any donations made to your page as
they are processed immediately and even if we have not yet paid
over the funds to your nominated charities the donations are being
held in trust for them.
If your donors wish to receive a refund
they will need to contact the charity directly.
13. How do I edit the thank you
message people receive when they donate to my Sponsor Me
event?
In the 'Edit page' function of 'My
Pages' you can add to or amend your thank you email at any
time.
14. My event has been cancelled; can I
get my donors' money back?
If an event is cancelled or you have
pulled out for any reason, we recommend that you update your page
with the date your event has been cancelled. This will prevent any
further donations to your event.
We would also suggest that you update
the summary of your event with an explanation of why your event has
closed, and that any money you have received will be given directly
to the charity.
We cannot refund any donations made to
your page as they are processed immediately and even if we have not
yet paid over the funds to your nominated charities the donations
are being held in trust for them.
If your donors wish to receive a refund
they will need to contact the charity directly.
15. I have finished my event - what
do I do next?
Once the closing date for sponsorship
for your event has passed the page will no longer be able to
receive donations, and will be automatically shut down.
Any eligible Gift Aid will be processed and claimed and payments
will be made to your charity. The time taken for charities to
receive donations will vary depending on whether we hold the
charity bank details, which will need verifying for charities new
to Charities Trust.
Funds raised using your Sponsor Me page will be paid to the
charity automatically in the form of a BACS transfer.
16. How much does Sponsor Me
cost?
There is no cost associated with
setting up a Sponsor Me page.
Our costs are covered by a small
administration fee of 4% of funds raised which is deducted before
the monies are transferred to charities.
This fee covers all costs of providing
the Sponsor Me service including the bank processing charges for
credit and debit cards.
17. How do I claim Gift Aid?
Charities Trust will claim Gift Aid on
all eligible donations and pass the funds to your chosen charities
after we have received the claimed funds from HMRC.
Donations will be processed once the
event has been closed.
18. When will my charity receive the
donations?
Donations made to your page are passed
to charity on a monthly basis using the BACS payments
service.
To ensure charities receive their money
quickly and they do not have to wait until the end of your event
donations to your page are paid out on a monthly basis using the
BACS payments service.
19. Can I sponsor someone from My
Giving Account?
Yes. To sponsor someone via their
Sponsor Me page, you can use funds from a My Giving Account.
You will first need to log into your My
Giving Account; once you have logged in, visit the Sponsor Me page
that you wish to support and the option to donate directly from
your account will clearly appear in the donation section of the
page.
20. Will my charity/charities know the
funds have come from my fundraising event?
We provide a monthly charity statement
facility where charities can log in and securely download details
of the funds we have transferred to them. This will include your
details so that they can thank you. The details of your individual
sponsors will not be passed to the charities.
21. Is there a minimum donation?
Yes, if you are donating via a Credit
or Debit card the minimum donation is £5. This is only so Charities
Trust covers the bank charges applied to any online transactions.
If you are donating from a My Giving Account then there is no
minimum donation as there are no bank fees applied.
22. Why isn't Gift Aid displayed on my
confirmation email?
Requesting that Charities Trust claim
Gift Aid on your donation is not a guarantee that it will be
approved. Each application that we receive from a donor claiming
that they qualify for Gift Aid is reviewed by us prior to us
claiming Gift Aid from HMRC. Therefore at the time of the donation
we can only illustrate the Gift Aid entitlement.
The total that we present to you in the
payment confirmation email (and on the fundraising page) only
includes money that we can guarantee we will receive at the time
the email is produced.
The payment confirmation email that you
receive is for your record, therefore as you have requested that we
claim Gift Aid on your behalf we have an obligation to reflect this
request.
23. Donation Example
Initial
Donation:
Donation = £50
Potential Gift Aid = £12.50
Total potential Donation =
£62.50
Fees
Charged:
Donation processing (4% of £50) =
£2.00
Gift Aid processing (4% of £12.50) =
£0.50
Total Fees =
£2.50
Actual
Donation:
Donation minus fee = £48.00
Gift Aid minus fee = £12.00*
Total Donation value =
£60.00
*Once the money has been received from
the HMRC we will then pay the appropriate charity(ies).