The Big Give
Encyclopedia
theBigGive.org.uk is a non-profit, charitable website which enables donors to find and support charity projects in their field of interest. All UK registered charities can sign up for free and the site currently showcases the projects of nearly 8,000 charities.
along with several international charities. He is chairman of the Reed Foundation and over the years he became increasingly frustrated by the endless number of unsolicited charity appeals which he received. Reed founded The Big Give to solve this problem; to allow philanthropists to search proactively and save charities' resources.
The Big Give is free for all users and allows philanthropists and donors to support their favourite charitable projects, or discover new charities working in their preferred area. The site's successes include a small charity working in North East England, which received a grant of £175,000 from a philanthropist who found the charity on The Big Give.
Since its launch, The Big Give has raised over £20million. The majority of this has been raised through Challenge Funding.
Charity Christmas Party. On 2nd December, 1,000 guests and celebrities filled the store and enjoyed a magical night of champagne and canapés across all five floors. The night’s festive entertainment was provided by top arts organisations, including the National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain, Classical Opera Company and Deafinitely Theatre. The party raised a total of £60,000, with each guest deciding which charity benefited from their ticket. Ruby Wax
, who helped out at the party, said “it’s fantastic that you can decide which charity to give to, and can follow your heart.”
This year, the 2011 Challenge will again be launched in style at a star-studded night at the store. Tickets(£50 each) for the party sold-out in a record breaking 15minutes and the last pair was auctioned online for £500. Once again, the store will be filled with champagne, festie food and entertainment from charities such as LAMDA, RADA
, the National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain and the Circus Space
.
, which saw Reed Foundation join with other philanthropists to double donations to 13 aid agencies. The appeal raised £175,000.
Each participating student is given their own charity voucher. Students then conduct thorough research into charities of interest to them and answer online questions which help them to evaluate their chosen charities. Each student then donates their own voucher online, before discussing their choice with a small group of their peers. As a group, they then choose one of the charities which has already received a voucher to give a presentation on – with the winning presentation earning an extra donation.
The programme has been running for three years and has already been featured in both the Economist and the Wall Street Journal. Twenty schools are estimated to take part in 2011, with over 600 pupils (generally years 8 and 9) benefiting from the project.
History
The Big Give was founded in October 2007 by Sir Alec Reed CBE. Reed is the founder of Reed (Company)Reed (Company)
REED is an employment agency. The company was founded in 1960 by Sir Alec Reed CBE, FCMA, FCIM, FCIPD and is currently chaired by his son, James Reed MA, MBA, FCIPD. REED also offers training and HR consultancy services. The company’s website, reed.co.uk, was established in 1995 and doubles as a...
along with several international charities. He is chairman of the Reed Foundation and over the years he became increasingly frustrated by the endless number of unsolicited charity appeals which he received. Reed founded The Big Give to solve this problem; to allow philanthropists to search proactively and save charities' resources.
The Big Give is free for all users and allows philanthropists and donors to support their favourite charitable projects, or discover new charities working in their preferred area. The site's successes include a small charity working in North East England, which received a grant of £175,000 from a philanthropist who found the charity on The Big Give.
Since its launch, The Big Give has raised over £20million. The majority of this has been raised through Challenge Funding.
2008 Matched Funding Challenge
In December 2008, Sir Alec launched his pilot Matched Fund by offering to match online donations up to a total of £1million. The public response was amazing and £1million was donated online in just 45minutes, benefiting 250 different charities. The average donation was £1,400 and £44,000 was raised every minute. The Reed Foundation was awarded a Third Sector Award for Innovation in Fundraising in recognition of the success of this challenge.2009 Christmas Challenge
In the 2009 Christmas Challenge, The Big Give raised a staggering £8.5million, smashing its £6m target. This was leveraged from an initial £1.5m donation from the Reed Foundation. The Challenge was launched on 7th December and donations to the 174 participating charities were doubled by a fund created by Reed Foundation, along with charities' trustees and major donors. The fund doubled over 7,500 donations, this time raising the first £1million in 25minutes and the first £3million in under 2 hours.2010 Christmas Challenge
The Big Give 2010 Christmas Challenge has doubled over 15,000 donations and raised an incredible £9.3million. Donations from the public were doubled by a number of generous sponsors, including Arts & Business, Reed Specialist Recruitment, Garfield Weston Foundation, Candis Magazine and Ethiopiaid. The Challenge supported 323 charities which span all sectors, from children and health to environment and arts. Participating charities range from international aid agencies, such as Oxfam, to small, local hospices.2011 Christmas Challenge
The 2011 Christmas Challenge will be our biggest yet, doubling thousands of donations to hundreds of selected charities. The public stage of the Challenge - when your donation could be doubled - launches at 10am on Monday 5th December.Fortnum & Mason Charity Christmas Party
The 2010 Challenge was launched at the Fortnum & MasonFortnum & Mason
Fortnum & Mason, often shortened to just "Fortnum's" is a department store, situated in central London, with two other branches in Japan. Its headquarters is located at 181 Piccadilly, where it was established in 1707 by William Fortnum and Hugh Mason...
Charity Christmas Party. On 2nd December, 1,000 guests and celebrities filled the store and enjoyed a magical night of champagne and canapés across all five floors. The night’s festive entertainment was provided by top arts organisations, including the National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain, Classical Opera Company and Deafinitely Theatre. The party raised a total of £60,000, with each guest deciding which charity benefited from their ticket. Ruby Wax
Ruby Wax
Ruby Wax is a BAFTA nominated American comedian who made a career in the United Kingdom as part of the alternative comedy scene in the 1980s.-Early life:...
, who helped out at the party, said “it’s fantastic that you can decide which charity to give to, and can follow your heart.”
This year, the 2011 Challenge will again be launched in style at a star-studded night at the store. Tickets(£50 each) for the party sold-out in a record breaking 15minutes and the last pair was auctioned online for £500. Once again, the store will be filled with champagne, festie food and entertainment from charities such as LAMDA, RADA
Rada
Rada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
, the National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain and the Circus Space
The Circus Space
The Circus Space in the Hoxton area of London offers the UK's only university degree programme in circus. It supports the professional development of circus performers and circus companies and runs youth and adult evening classes every week...
.
Emergency Challenge Funds
Challenge Funds can be easily adapted to raise funds for emergency appeals, due to the urgency that they create. The most recent of these emergency funds was for the 2011 East Africa drought2011 East Africa drought
Since mid-July 2011, a severe drought has been affecting the entire East Africa region. Said to be "the worst in 60 years", the drought has caused a severe food crisis across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya that threatens the livelihood of more than 13.3 million people...
, which saw Reed Foundation join with other philanthropists to double donations to 13 aid agencies. The appeal raised £175,000.
Schools
The Big Give has developed an exciting programme to inspire the next generation of philanthropists, providing the first step towards a lifetime of charitable activity.Each participating student is given their own charity voucher. Students then conduct thorough research into charities of interest to them and answer online questions which help them to evaluate their chosen charities. Each student then donates their own voucher online, before discussing their choice with a small group of their peers. As a group, they then choose one of the charities which has already received a voucher to give a presentation on – with the winning presentation earning an extra donation.
The programme has been running for three years and has already been featured in both the Economist and the Wall Street Journal. Twenty schools are estimated to take part in 2011, with over 600 pupils (generally years 8 and 9) benefiting from the project.