Get Involved

Schools, Colleges & Community Groups

Many schools choose to support us through fundraising. The Willow Burn team offer support to schools that choose to fundraise for us, we also provide event ideas and initiatives that can be rolled out by everyone involved within the place of learning.

Willow Burn Hospice won’t be the only one to benefit from this engagement, any school involved shall receive the following benefits:

  • Increased exposure: As an organisation, you shall gain better publicity from working alongside Willow Burn Hospice as well as a greater community standing.    

  • Learning experiences: Working with us offers both teachers and pupils the chance to learn about who we are and what we do, it provides an insight into the charity world and will demonstrate how fundraising contributions are used and why they matter.

  • Citizenship: Our being part of your school enables us to give your pupils the chance to prepare for the changing world. Citizenship programmes for primary school teach children about themselves as members of their community.  One of the valuable social skills they learn is how to help others and they begin to take an active part in the life of their school and their local neighbourhood. 

    In secondary school, students are taught about the roles played by voluntary groups in society as well as ways to contribute to the improvement of community, including the opportunity to volunteer in the community as well as other forms of responsible activity.

For further information regarding fundraising, contact Selina Mankin at: smankin@willowburnhospice.org.uk

 

Here are a few ideas to get your fundraising started.  Of course, you can come up with your own creative ideas; the only limit is your imagination. 

Fundraising Ideas - Primary Schools

Art competition – run an arty competition and ask children to create artwork around a fun theme, such as the Willow Burn willow tree.  Afterwards, hold a ticketed exhibition to showcase the creations and announce the winner of the competition.   You could even hold an auction on the night and parents can bid for the paintings!

Coin trail – ask children to bring in spare coppers from home, lay the coins out in a trail and see how far round the school they get.  You never know, you might break a world record, so get fishing behind that sofa!

Disney Day – a magical twist on the usual dress-up day.  Ask pupils to make a small donation (asking their parents first) to come to school dressed as their favourite Disney character.  How many Elsa’s or Stormtroopers can you spot?

Uniform day for teachers – an alternative to the traditional non-uniform day where teachers must wear uniform to school for the day and pupils get to wear normal clothes.  Teachers and pupils pay £1 or £2 to take part and teachers get fined if their tie is crooked or shirt is untucked. 

Seasonal fundraising – ask pupils to decorate eggs for Easter or make decorations or cards for Christmas for their parents to purchase.

Classroom Olympics – an addition to the annual school sports day; one for a rainy day.  Pupils can take part in events such as pencil javelin, elastic band archery, mental gymnastics, or any event you can think of using school stationery or furniture. 

Read-a-thon – pupils get sponsored to read as many of their favourite books as they can in a day either at home or at school.  Why not tie it is with World Book Day and pupils can come to school dressed as a character from their favourite book.

Bag pack or bake sale – tried, tested and simple fundraising ideas that work.

 

Fundraising Ideas – Secondary Schools & Colleges

Fashion show or concert – showcase your school’s talent by hosting a fashion show or concert for students, teachers and parents.  Charge an entry fee on the door and hold a raffle or auction on the night. 

Master (School) Chef Group Challenge – students are split into three teams to cook a three-course meal for parents.  Each group is responsible for cooking a course within a specific time to serve to parents in the school hall.  Why not host the event on World Food Day and choose each course from a different country?

Turn £5 into £100 – students are split into teams and each team is given £5 from Willow Burn.  Each team must use their initiative to turn their school’s £5 investment into £100. 

Treasure hunt – students are split into teams and each team must work together to solve clues around their school, to be the first team to find the ‘treasure’ at the end.  Ask a local business if they will donate prizes to give to the winning team and the runners’ up.  

Teacher auction – students can bid for their teachers to do jobs around their school, from a pre-approved list of tasks.  Each student has a maximum amount of money to bid with and they can bid for their teachers to cook the school lunch, teach a PE class or help with basic DIY. 

School Fair – a summer-time school fair is always a winner.  Invite students to set up stalls selling cakes, artwork or pre-loved fashion.  Ask the school band to play throughout the day, host a raffle and organise sporting events that parents can take part in.   The possibilities are endless.

Do you need a speaker for an assembly?
If you would like to find out more about Willow Burn Hospice before your event or activity, a member of the fundraising team would be more than happy to speak during your school assembly.  We can tailor our talk so that it is interesting and inspiring for younger children as well as older students and we will ensure that it fits in with the timings of your school day.   Simply contact Selina Mankin on 01207 529 224 or email smankin@willowburnhsopice.org.uk  if this is something you would like to arrange.

Thank you!

Anything is possible when you have the right people there to support you. Thank you.