Legacy fundraising at small charities
09/06/2022
It’s Remember A Charity (RAC) Week. The annual event raises awareness about gifts in wills to encourage more people to consider leaving a legacy.
Research shows that the number of people donating to charity in this way is increasing. The charitable legacy market is worth over £3 billion a year and many small charities are now giving time and budget to this activity.
Lucinda Frostick, CEO of Remember A Charity told us: "Legacy fundraising isn't just for large charities. More small charities are promoting gifts in wills as part of their fundraising strategies. Often supporters may have had first-hand experience of the small charity they support so can imagine the impact a legacy gift will have. This can be a very powerful message.
“The small charities within Remember A Charity use and customise the campaign materials we produce each year. They really do pull out all the stops to promote legacies to their supporters during the week and I can't wait to see what they have planned this year."
We spoke to the following small charities who are members of Remember A Charity about their legacy fundraising.
SongBird Survival
SongBird Survival (SBS) is the only UK charity dedicated to restoring populations of song and other small birds. SBS funds scientific research into causes of their decline and finds tools to make a real difference to their survival. Since the charity started in 2001, bird and wildlife lovers, gardeners and conservationists around the UK have given their support.
Georgina Bradley, Operations and Finance Manager told us about the role of legacies in the organisation. “One third of our annual research programme has been made possible from our gifts in wills and in-memory donations. Remember A Charity Week is the culmination of our year-round programme telling supporters, old and new, that gifts in wills is something anyone can do and no matter how small the gift, every penny helps the future of songbirds.
“We use the tools Wills from RAC to promote the messaging across our social media platforms, emails, bi-annual magazine as well as ad hoc postal communications with our supporters. This year we’re also planning to use Facebook and Instagram advertising to attract new supporters to set up a tribute fundraiser as well as think about remembering SongBird Survival in their wills.
“My own father was a huge wildlife and animal lover. In his later years he’d spend hours sitting in “Granny’s Chair” with his binoculars, watching all the different birds coming to his feeders in the garden. I’m planning to make a video using the chair and binoculars to tell my story to encourage others to think of their loved ones who also loved birds and wildlife. If my teenage nephew lets me, I hope to use his story about training to become a bird-zoo-keeper to demonstrate how the next generation of ecologists and scientists are so very important to keep looking after our birds.
“SBS has only been legacy fundraising for seven years. We started off small with a leaflet and messaging in our magazine and on our website. We have since started proactively engaging with our supporters and asking for feedback. Around half of our recent legacy income has come from people not known to us. Maybe our previous RAC Week campaigns connected with them?
“Originally SBS was just our trustees and me, we’ve now grown to five staff. I have a dozen “hats” but have been trying to dedicate one afternoon per fortnight to legacies. Much of this time is spent phoning or writing to engaged supporters to find out more about them, why they support our charity and if they have considered leaving a gift to us in their will. Getting these insights is so helpful.
“My top tip is to do everything to understand your audience. Use this knowledge to craft messages which will catch their imagination. Also, make sure the whole team, including trustees and volunteers understand how important legacies are and how easy it is to talk to people about them. Regularly give them messages and materials to make it easy for them to sing about legacies.”
Adoption Matters
Adoption Matters is a children’s charity and voluntary adoption agency established in 1947. They recruit, train and prepare individuals and families seeking to adopt and offer them ongoing support and development throughout the adoption process and for as long as they need it. They have also provided a support and guidance service for adopted children, adults and birth families for over 50 years.
Jenny MacQuire, Marketing Manager told us: “Our supporters include our families, their extended families, adopted adults and also the general public and businesses who wish to support a children’s charity. We have taken part in Remember A Charity Week for the last three years and find its engaging content and videos are a great way to capture people’s attention.
We’ve focused more on legacy fundraising for the past four years. It is very important to us as many of our families wish to leave a gift to us. Internal buy-in from all staff and board of trustees is vital to the success of any campaign. We’ve hosted information events to help them use the messaging in their work, all year round.”
Awards for Young Musicians
Since 1998 Awards for Young Musicians (AYM) has supported over 3,000 talented young people from low income families helping them to grow and fulfil their musical potential. AYM believe that musical talent is everywhere but opportunity isn’t. The charity’s supporters believe that music should be available to everyone and know about the transformative effect it can have.
Hester Cockcroft, Chief Executive said: “AYM was actually founded on a legacy so we know the difference that gifts in wills can make. During Remember A Charity week, we share stories of people who have left gifts in their wills, those who have set up tribute funds and the young musicians we have supported thanks to these gifts. These stories highlight the importance of legacies and the difference they make to young musicians.
We understand that investing in legacies is important even if we don’t see the impact immediately. Our approach is to let the pledger take control of how they want to give. We make sure they have all the information they need and know that leaving a legacy is an option. We also stay in touch with all supporters so they always know how much their generosity is valued. Our pledgers and donors really enjoy our regular fundraising concerts, where young musicians supported by AYM perform, as they can see and hear the wonderful impact their support will have.”
