What is community fundraising?

Community fundraising is about mobilising communities

to support your cause. It is what many people think of

when they think of the term ‘fundraising’ and can

comprise events, bake sales, raffles, table sales, and

much more! The basis of community fundraising is that a

large audience gives small donations, and a key feature

of community fundraising is that it is largely unpaid and

carried out often by volunteers in the local community.

For all the popularity of community fundraising it is also one of the least cost-effective

means of generating income for your cause. This is because the donor often gets

something in return. For instance, for a charity raffle the organisation might have the

outgoing cost of paying for the prizes; or the cost of booking bands and food for a

fundraising ball. Only 1% of all charity income comes from community fundraising. So what

other benefits are there?

Benefits of community fundraising:

Your group may have a certain amount of money that it wants to raise from community

fundraising, but as mentioned above, this form of fundraising is not always cost effective, so

what other benefits can it have for your organisation?

 It is an opportunity to raise awareness of your group in the local community

 It can help you to find new individual donors and volunteers

 It can help your group to build up credibility within your community

 It can be used to give recognition to donors and volunteers

 It can educate the public about your cause and your work

 It can provide unrestricted income for your organisation.