Community Fundraising Guide - Focus Ireland

A STEP-BY-STEP
GUIDE TO
FUNDRAISING FOR
FOCUS
IRELAND
Call 1850 204 205
Visit focusireland.ie
Find us on
CHY 7220

Focus Ireland’s Homeless Prevention Work
FEEL AT HOME WITH FUNDRAISING
When many of us think of homelessness, we think of the people we see
sleeping rough in doorways and on the street. There are families, single
men and single women living in unsuitable, insecure and temporary
accommodation all over Ireland. There are thousands in fear of losing their
homes due to the pressures that the current crisis has placed upon them and
their relationships.

OF THE 5,000 PEOPLE
ACCESSING HOMELESS
SERVICES, 1 IN 7 IS A CHILD
Focus Ireland has been working tirelessly since
1985 to combat and prevent homelessness in
Ireland. We believe that everyone has a right to a
place they can call home. With over 60 services
around Ireland we work in Dublin, Cork, Kilkenny,
Sligo, Clare, Kildare, Limerick, Waterford, Wexford
and we have recently won contracts to expand into
Louth, Cavan and Monaghan in 2013. In 2012 we
engaged with over 8,000 people who benefited
from Focus Ireland services.
Focus Ireland aim to help people break the cycle
of homelessness with early intervention. We do
this by giving access to extensive information and
referral services; we provide housing and a range
of programmes.
Our services include:
• Offering extensive information and
advice
• Working on a one- to-one basis with
people to assess their needs and give
practical advice
• Supplying support services as needed,
such as psychotherapy, childcare,
education and training, practical skills
and addiction referrals
• Providing people with a place to call home
How your money is spent
Our services are placed
across Ireland
For every Euro donated
90 cent goes directly on services
preventing and combatting
homelessness
7 cent goes on raising funds
3 cent goes on goverance
Your contribution is
important to us and we will
use it well.
• Drop-in centre
Number of services in each province:
Connacht: 3 Leinster: 38
Munster: 25 Ulster: 2
This is our promise to you – we will make
sure that we use your contribution wisely
to help prevent homelessness in the
long term and support those who are
homeless now. 90 cent of every Euro
donated goes directly on services.

THE DIFFERENCE YOU CAN MAKE
€50
€66
€100
Helps a child who is homeless to have
a safe place to learn and to have fun in
our Waterford Childcare Centre
Helps young people aged 12–25 who
are on the street in Dublin to access a
bed for the night and to support them
to take the necessary steps to move
out of homelessness permanently
Helps to provide safe, warm
accommodation and support for young
people aged 16–18 in our Off the
Streets hostel
€500
€1,000
€2,000
Helps to give a family a rented home in
our emergency and long-term homes
project in North Dublin and to provide
them with childcare services
Gives a previously homeless family a
new home to rent and the chance of
a new life; supports a family or single
adult who were homeless or at risk of
homeless
Provides a home and the necessary
support in our aftercare programme
for a young person leaving a state
institution or whose foster care has not
worked out
Susan and her little girl
Susan used to have a job and she rented an apartment with
her six year old daughter. When she lost her job she got
into debt and ended up homeless. She was in emergency
accommodation for seven long months. The staff in Focus
Ireland’s Coffee Shop and Information Service in Temple Bar,
helped her to find a home.
Susan remembers the bad times. “It was really awful living a
small place with nowhere to cook and nowhere that was safe
for my daughter to play. It really had a bad impact on her mood
and confidence and I know it shouldn’t have but it made me feel
guilty as a mother.”
Susan has now moved into a proper house in the private rented
sector and said it’s great to be back on her feet again. She is
also doing a course in further education and is hoping to get
another part time job. “I just love being almost back to where we
were and it is great for me to see the change in my little girl. She
is happy again and that means the world to me because as a
mother that is what is always number one.”

WHERE TO START
>Don’t go it alone – gather a group of
friends and form a committee.
> Decide what you and the committee want
to do; think about what you know and are
interested in, e.g. baking, tennis, etc.; and
organise an event around that. If you are
out in the hills every weekend, maybe a
sponsored climb would be better than an
expensive black-tie benefit. But if you are
all party animals, a cycle ride might not be
the way to go!
> Don’t take on too much; allow enough
time to prepare the event before setting
the date.
> It is vital that you are able to name at least
half of the people who will take part in
the event before you start! Remember,
advertising does not sell tickets, a great
idea does not sell tickets – only people
sell tickets.
> Choose an appropriate venue that will
attract people.
> Decide whether or not you need
volunteers for the event, how many you
may need and what tasks they will do.
Talk to your local media to recruit
volunteers, put a call out on Facebook
and/or ask friends and family.
> Set a budget, goals and timeline for your
plan. Include in the budget gross and
net income, number of tickets to be sold,
number of raffle prizes to be obtained,
etc. Set your target income and plan how
exactly you are going to raise that money
– a raffle, ticket sales, sponsorship, selling
goods, etc. Ideally, your costs should not
be more than half of what you raise. List all
of the estimated expenses and approach
suppliers to provide services/goods free
of charge. Look after the money you
raised; up-front costs if you won’t receive
the money until later; and the pricing of
tickets and promotions to sell them, e.g.
early bird tickets, etc. Perhaps you need
a sponsor and know someone you could
approach.
> Get in touch with us in Focus Ireland,
register as a fundraiser by filling out a
Fundraising Form and avail of help,
support, advice and marketing materials
to help you to launch your event.
> Publicise your event using posters, flyers,
banners, emails, Facebook, local media,
word-of-mouth.
> Try to sell as many tickets as possible
before the event so that you have an idea
of the numbers attending; ask friends to
sell tickets for you.
> On the day, set up as early as you can!
Make a checklist of everything that you
need to set up and create the look you
want, e.g. decorations, music, lighting, etc.
> Ensure that first aid, security and health
and safety plans are working.
> Ensure that all legal, insurance and permit
considerations are covered.
> Make sure that you have enough help to
set up, run and clean up after the event.
Think about how you are going to look
after the money you raise and get it to
Focus Ireland (cheque or bank draft,
safe/cash box, bank account – see page
9 for details of how to lodge funds).
Don’t forget to thank everyone who
helped! A phone call is nice; a personal
note even better.

PUBLICISING YOUR EVENT
Promotion is the vital ingredient in a successful fundraising event.
To attract people to an event, you will need to inform them of the following:
> What the event is – what is being offered in the ticket price,
who it is suitable for (children, adults, and sports enthusiasts), etc.
Make sure to include the fact that it is a charity event for
Focus Ireland as this will motivate people to come along.
> When the event is taking place – day, date, time?
> Where the event is taking place – is there public transport/parking?
Think about the best way of reaching people in your community –
local press, local radio station, leafleting, posters in the community
centre / church / local shop, etc. Word-of-mouth is often the best
way to publicise a local event. In addition, Facebook and Twitter
offer cheap ways of letting many people know what is going on.
Don’t forget to take photos on the day and share details with your
local community and us of how it went and to thank everyone who
supported you.

FUNDRAISING GUIDELINES
Fundraising from the public may require a permit or permission from
the Gardaí (if collections are taking place in a public place), the local
authority, or owners or managers of private property.
Small raffles held as part of an event, in a workplace or a club do
not require a licence or need to be registered (these often have
cloakroom-style tickets).You will need to apply for a licence from the
District Court if you are mailing out tickets to individuals in the post,
if you are advertising the raffle to customers, or if the value of the
prizes will be more than €4,000. Please contact us for further details
(contact details are on the back cover of this booklet).
You must clarify whether or not your event requires insurance cover.
Depending on the type of event, you may need to seek independent
insurance advice and we request that you ensure that you hold
adequate public liability insurance cover for your event. Unfortunately,
Focus Ireland’s insurance policies only cover fundraising events
organised and managed directly by Focus Ireland. Focus Ireland can
accept no liability for any claim, which may arise during the course of
any other fundraising events.
Garda permits are required for the collection of cash from the public
in any public place or by house-to-house visits. However, please do
not collect money door-to-door on our behalf.
If you are unsure of whether or not you need permission or a permit,
or would like us to apply for permits on your behalf, please do give
us a call. We are here to help!
Using Focus Ireland’s name or logo requires permission and all
creative and copy for example, posters and flyers must be approved
in advance. Registered Charity Number CHY 7220.
How to donate
You can lodge the funds you have raised directly on our website:
www.focusireland.ie/organiseyourownevent/lodgeyourfunds.
Alternatively, you can lodge the funds directly to our
bank account:
Bank: Bank of Ireland, College Green, Dublin 2
Account name: Focus Ireland
Account number: 15834518
Sort code: 90-00-17
IBAN: IE30 BOFI 9000 1715 8345 18
Swift Code (Bank Identifier Code): BOFIE2D
We would be grateful if you could send us an email to
events@focusireland.ie to confirm the amount and date of the
lodgement or send the lodgement slip to the address below.
You can also send a cheque or postal order (made out to
Focus Ireland) to:
Community Fundraising Team, Focus Ireland,
9–12 High Street, Christchurch, Dublin 8
And, finally, you are welcome to drop cash or a cheque
into our offices:
DUBLIN
Focus Ireland, 9–12 High Street,
Christchurch, Dublin 8
SLIGO
69 John Street, Sligo Town, Sligo
WATERFORD
St John’s Park, Grange Cohan
CORK
Focus Ireland, 80a South Mall, Cork City
LIMERICK
7A Catherine Place, Limerick

Focus Ireland Supporter Press Release
When publicising your event, it is often useful to contact the local media. Email us (events@focusireland.ie)
for local media contact details. Please see our template Press Release below to see how to go about this.
Date:
For further information contact:
Event name:
Event location:
Local man/woman:
is set to raise/has raised:
for Focus Ireland, the housing and homelessness charity.
He/She will do/did this by:
on:
He/She decided to help Focus Ireland during these difficult
economic times to support their services in his/her local community.
You can find his/her sponsorship page at
www.focusireland.ie/
Quote from fundraiser:
Quote from Focus Ireland:
Editor’s notes:
Focus Ireland works:
Date:
Other fundraising ideas to inspire you!
Abseiling
Antique Fair
Art Exhibition
Astrology Evening
Athletic Meeting
Auction
Babysitting
Balloon Race
Barbeque
Barn Dance
Bazaar
Beard Shaving
Bike Tour
Bingo
Book Sale
Bridge Drive
Bring and Buy Sale
Bungee Jump
Car Cleaning
Car Rally
Carol Singing
Casino Night
Christmas Day Swim
Coffee Party
Concert
Dance
Darts
Dinner Dance
Disco
Dog Show
Dress Down Day
Easter Bonnet
Competition
Exhibition
Expedition
Fancy Dress Ball
Fashion Show
Festival
Film Show
Five-a-Side
Flower Show
Football Match
Fortune Telling
Gala Evening
Garden Party
Girls Night In
Golf Tournament
Good-as-New Sale
Greyhound Meeting
Gymkhana
Halloween Party
Hill Walking
Individual Gifts
Jamboree
Jumble Sale
Lawn Mowing
Lunch Runs at the Office
Luncheon
Marathon
Masque Ball
Mountain Climbing
Music Recitals
Non-Uniform Day
Parachute Jump
Payroll Deduction
Pet Show
Plant Sale
Premiere – cinema
(charity screening)
or theatre
Quiz – Pub/Table
Race
Race Night
Raffle
Rag Week
Sleep-Out
Speed Dating
Sponsored Event,
e.g. slimming, silence
Sports Day
Street Collection
(Don’t forget you need
a Garda permit!)
Swimming Gala
Table Quiz
Talent Competition
Tea Party
Tennis Tournament
Theme Evening
Tombola
Treasure Hunt
Trek
Tug-o-War
Vegetable Sale
Veteran Car Rally
Walk
Whist Drive
Who Wants To Be
A Millionaire?
Window Cleaning
Wine and Cheese Party
Wine Tasting
World Record Beating

Fundraising Form
Name:
Organisation (if applicable):
Contact Address:
Daytime Contact Number:
E-mail:
How would you like to be contacted?
Type of fundraising event:
Date taking place:
Location:
Number of attendees expected:
Projected proceeds:
Are there any other beneficiaries to this event? Please name:
If so, how will the funds be allocated?
Are you having a street collection or public raffle?
YES NO
If yes, has a Garda permit been applied for and received?
YES NO
Please indicate if you would like any of the following; please note there are substantial costs to
Focus Ireland to produce these products, please be mindful of this when ordering quantities.
Quantity of T-shirts:
Quantity of Posters:
Quantity of Sponsorship Forms:
Quantity of Balloons:
Information on Focus Ireland:

Please give the details of two referees:
Referee 1
Name:
Affiliation:
Address:
Tel:
Email:
Referee 2
Name:
Affiliation:
Address:
Tel:
Email:
Would you like to subscribe to our ezine?
YES NO
Have you supported Focus Ireland before?
YES NO
DECLARATION: I declare that the information provided on this form is correct, and that all
proceeds from the event will be forwarded to Focus Ireland within six weeks of the event date.
SIGNED:
DATE:
WITNESS:
DATE:
ID MUST BE PROVIDED BEFORE COLLECTION BOXES, STOCK OR SPONSORSHIP FORMS WILL BE ISSUED. THE FUNDS
RAISED AND FUNDRAISING MATERIALS MUST BE RETURNED WITHIN 30 DAYS OF YOUR FUNDRAISER TAKING PLACE.

WHAT NEXT?
Call us on (01) 881 5900 to talk to our experienced fundraising team about your event or fundraising
idea. We can register you and give you all the advice you need.
We can send you t-shirts, posters, balloons and help you to set up your own sponsorship page online
(www.focusireland.ie) so that you can email sponsorship forms to your friends and family.
And, finally…
THANK YOU!