Money matters

From tips on how to open a bank account to a ready-to-use accounting template – find everything you need to know about managing your group’s finances here. 

Good Treasurer Guide – An overview of the treasurer role and some hints and tips to help ensure that your group funds remain in safe hands. 

Banking for Charities – This resource provides an overview of the types of account which are available to voluntary groups. It’s particularly useful for helping you decide which type of account is best for you. It's worth shopping around!

Managing your finances – a template for local groups – the Finance team at the National Deaf Children’s Society have created this template to help you manage your finances in an accurate and transparent way.

Really useful links

England and Wales

Charity accounting templates: receipts and payments accounts

Scotland

Receipts and payments accounts

Northern Ireland

Accounting and reporting essentials

For more information, contact us.

Why should you fundraise?

As well as helping you generate income, fundraising can also:

• increase awareness of your group in your local community and on social media
• help to build strong relationships between members and encourage them to take ownership of the group
• enable you to organise fun activities for families to take part in together

What should you consider when fundraising?

• set realistic and achievable targets.
• think carefully about the type of fundraising you want to do – is the money raised from the activity worth the time and effort it requires?
• give yourself plenty of time to plan and try to divide responsibilities between volunteers.
• clearly display your charity name and charity number (if you have one) at events and on any fundraising material.
• make sure you’re insured for the activity that you are planning.

When should you fundraise?

Fundraising can happen throughout the year, but planning an event at a specific time could help to generate even more money. For example, Christmas is a perfect time for bag packing or signed carols. You could also think about organising a speed dating event on Valentine’s day.

Don’t forget to consider the day of the week and time of the activity, which could have an affect on your event – for better or for worse!

Who can help?

Fundraising is something that all committee members and members (both adults and children) can get involved in. It is also worth asking for support from outside of your membership – you might be surprised by how giving people are. Our local groups have found support from external friends and families as well as local businesses. If you don’t ask, you won’t get!

Use the media

If you are organising a specific event, the more publicity you can get, the better! Use your local press to tell get word out about your event. Remember to mention any corporate sponsors that you may have, and include details about how people can donate or support you.

Keep it legal!

One of the most important considerations when fundraising is to make sure that you are keeping to legislation. For example, if you are collecting money in a public space you may be required to get a license from your local authority. If you are unsure about anything contact us or visit the How 2 Fundraise website.

Success stories and lessons learnt

Local deaf children's societies who attended our annual meeting in 2017 had some pretty impressive fundraising stories.

Download as PDF

Fundraising events 

Selling tickets to an exclusive event or activity is a great way to raise extra funds and bring people together to celebrate your local group. As with any event, make sure you cover all health and safety considerations, including writing a risk assessment and remembering to check that your insurance policy covers the activity that you are organising.

South Staffordshire Deaf Children’s Society organise an annual ‘Duck Race’ where they sell branded rubber ducks to members of the public and invite them to a fun day. The highlight of the day is the duck race itself where they release the ducks in the canal and see whose crosses the finish line first.

Challenge events

Do you know anyone who is willing to take on a challenge to raise money for your group? Perhaps jump out of a plane, take part in a triathlon or a midnight walk?

A Kent Deaf Children's Society family member cycled from London to Rome to raise money for the group. The epic journey took 12 days and raised a total of almost £4,000!

Once you’ve thought of an exciting challenge, use our template sponsorship form or set up an online fundraising page to start collecting.

Raffles and lotteries

Lotteries come in many forms and are, in general, regulated by the Gambling Commission. There are two types of lotteries that can be held without their permission:

• Small lotteries and raffles – these can be held at an event where the raffle isn’t the main focus. There must be no cash prize and tickets can only be sold on the day.
• Private lotteries – these must be limited to people who belong to the group or live/work in the premises where the lottery is being held. Tickets can’t be advertised outside of the premise or group and the price must be the same for everyone. Cash prizes can be awarded.

For more information on raffles, download our guide.

Collections

Collections are a great way to bring members together and to raise awareness of your group in your local area. Brighton, Hove and West Sussex Deaf Children's Society collected £877 by signing to Christmas carols in a local train station. As well as raising vital funds for their group, they did a brilliant job of promoting deaf awareness and deaf culture to passers-by.

Remember to always clearly display your charity name and (if you have one) charity number on your tins and buckets. It’s important that these are securely sealed and not open. You can purchase fundraising materials from the Care fundraising website.

If you want to collect on a high street or door-to-door, you will have to apply for a permit from your local authority. This can take some time, so remember to be prepared and plan ahead. You can also do a collection on a private property (e.g. shopping centre or local corner shop) but again, remember to ask for permission first!

Individual giving

Some groups have an annual membership fee or ask families to make a small donation when they join. As well as helping groups to be financially sustainable, this can ensure that your membership records are kept in order and that your members are committed to your cause.

Corporate funding

More often than not, businesses will be willing to donate their services, time and products to local community causes. Some companies will even match your fundraising efforts or offer to sign you up as their charity of the year. Make sure you ask your members to see if anyone has any contacts that you can utilise.

Colchester and Tendring Deaf Children's Society successfully applied to be one of the Mayor of Colchester’s charities of the year. As well as helping to promote their group in the local community, they were invited to collect a cheque of £4,600!

Download as PDF

Funding opportunities

The first step to writing a successful grant application is to find a possible funder.

There are a number of free resources that can help you find a funder suitable for you, including:

My Funding Central  

My Funding Central is a database of grant funding and social investment sources. This service is available to organisations with an annual income below £1m and is free for organisations under £30k.

Visit the My Funding Central website

The Charity Commission website

The search function allows you to find the details of all registered charities, including grant making ones. Here you can find the most up-to-date contact details of funders and view their annual accounts, which could contain information about previous grants which they have made.

Visit the Charity Commission website

Finding out about funders

With over 2,500 trusts, this is the most comprehensive grant directory available. Information such as funders contact information, type and range of grants they make and examples of recent beneficiaries can be found in this resource, which you should be able to find in all public libraries.

Visit Funding Scotland

Applying for a grant

When writing your grant application, make sure you consider the following:

• Read the guidelines carefully to check the eligibility of your local deaf children's society (DCS) and project.
• Ensure you understand the application process and are aware of the deadlines.
• Check the terms and conditions (i.e. if you are required to submit a progress report)
• Be specific and include details of what your project will look like, the problem it will address and why you need the funds.
• Don’t waffle or go over word limits.
• Ask someone to proofread your application.
• Remember to include everything that the funder is asking for (such as your annual accounts).
• Don’t apply for the funding opportunity unless you have enough time and resources to run the proposed project properly.

Writing an application letter

Whilst some funders will ask you to complete an application form, others will simply ask for a letter. Here are some suggestions about what to include:

• Full name of your local DCS and charity number (if you have one)
• A brief description of your DCS including when it was set up, who runs it, what services you provide and what geographical area you cover.
• Evidence demonstrating why your project is needed.
• A clear description of your project, including what it will involve, how many people will benefit and who will run it.
• A breakdown of the budget.
• Name and contact details of someone who can answer any queries about the application.

Subject to capacity, the Trusts and Statutory Fundraising team at the National Deaf Children's Society have offered to review any applications before you submit them. Contact us if you’d like to make use of this support.

For more information on grant writing, you can also visit the Small charities coalition website or contact the Local Groups team.