December 2024 Round-up
Welcome to the December edition of our newsletter. It’s a busy time of year for fundraisers with Christmas campaigns, planning for the year ahead and making sure your supporters feel appreciated. The Chartered Institute team has been busy too – with plenty to share with you in this month’s update…
Giving Tuesday generates millions for UK causes
Giving Tuesday took place two weeks ago and charities, businesses and the public came together to celebrate generosity and support good causes. The day was a big success, raising money for charities up and down the country and showing us all that giving can truly unite different groups and lift people’s spirits. You can read our highlights from this year’s Giving Tuesday, including the news that Big Give generated nearly £13million of match-funding in the first 12 hours of their Christmas Challenge campaign.
National Fundraising Awards – deadline for nominations
Do your amazing work justice by not leaving it to the last minute to put together your entry for the National Fundraising Awards!
For 2025 there are three new categories, and the deadline for entering is 23.59 Wednesday 22 January. Our judging panel has been revealed and the panel is looking forward to reading about the work you have been doing. Find out more about the Awards and the categories. Good luck!
Fundraising Convention – deadline for volunteering applications
Volunteering at Fundraising Convention is an exciting way to access the largest fundraising convention in Europe and we always get great feedback about what an amazing experience it was from those who have volunteered previously. The deadline to apply to be part of our volunteer team is Friday 24 January - visit our website for more details.
DCMS announces new placed-based giving philanthropy strategy
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has announced the government’s plans to develop a placed-based philanthropy strategy. The initiative aims to encourage philanthropists who have moved away from where they grow up, to support local charities in their hometowns.
We see this as a positive move towards developing a culture of giving that drives donations where they are needed most, and I was pleased to be able to attend the initial government roundtable discussion with DCMS to help shape the plans.
Congratulations to our class of 2024
Earlier in December we held a virtual graduation ceremony for more than 200 people who have graduated with a qualification from the Chartered Institute this year. The ceremony was a recognition of their hard work and achievements – congratulations to all the fundraisers who graduated this year.
Remembering Judith Rich OBE
We are saddened to hear of the death of Judith Rich OBE, a Fellow and long-standing volunteer at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising. She was the driving force behind Cards for Good Causes, where she was director from 1977 to 2000, and generated millions of pounds for charities in that role. And in a career that spanned over 40 years Judith was involved with over 30 charities as a fundraiser or board member. We pass our thoughts to her loved ones and friends as we remember her achievements.
A purr-fect visit to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home
Recently the Remember A Charity team organised for employees from the HMCTS Probate Registry to visit Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. This is part of Remember A Charity’s work to help build understanding of the importance of gifts in Wills for UK charities with employees at HMCTS.
The team from the Probate Registry enjoyed a tour of Battersea’s London centre, meeting some of the animals in their care. During the visit, they learned about the charity’s 160-year history and of the crucial role of charitable gifts in Wills, which now funds over 40% of Battersea's work. Find out more.
Reflecting on 2024
It’s wrapping and wrapped season and we have created a video and a document for you to see what we have been doing this year. Working with our volunteers, groups, members, partners, the wider sector and so many more people – we have had a busy year supporting fundraisers and championing fundraising. Take a look.
Helping you thrive in 2025
We’ve got lots of great things lined up for 2025, to help you thrive as a fundraiser. Some things to look out for next year are Fundraising Convention, Chartering for fundraisers, the National Fundraising Awards, increased mentoring opportunities and so much more.
We have had really positive feedback about the collections of resources that we shared this year (for small charities and on AI in fundraising) so next year we will be doing more of this. We’ll start in January with the launch of our resources for fundraising leaders.
Whether you have just stepped up into a Head of role or have been a Director in your charity for many years, our new collection of resources will support you to grow and thrive in your role. Available exclusively for members of the Chartered Institute – if you aren’t a member yet, join now to get access to these resources (and so much more) when they launch.
Thanks so much for reading our newsletters this year, I hope they have been insightful and helpful. Lots more to come next year!
We wish everyone a safe and happy festive season and all the best for 2025.
Katie and everyone at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.