Registered Charity No: 1003906 Company Limited by Guarantee No: 2024372

A Guide to Corporate Fundraising BIRMINGHAM MIND: “Promoting and providing high quality support for those experiencing mental distress”

Birmingham Mind 17 Graham Street Hockley Birmingham B1 3JR Tel: 0121 608 8001 Email: [email protected]

Testimonial

An Interview with Chris Harris WHEN DID YOUR MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS BEGIN? I had a lot of abuse as a child from about the age of two years old. I left home at 16 years of age and for a short while was on the streets. I met a woman when I was 18 years old and stayed with her for 12 years and I helped raise her two children as my own. I became increasingly aware of my mental health problem about five years before we split up. Bringing up the two children made me realize how wrong my own childhood was. Unfortunately the relationship ended due to my difficulties. I went to prison for a short while because of a friend and being locked up triggered the voices. It took me back to my childhood where I was locked away in my bedroom for long periods of time

HOW DID YOU BECOME INVOLVED WITH BIRMINGHAM MIND? Whilst on the streets I began to get help from the Woodbrook Community Centre. A friend of mine that also used the centre had a flat from Mind. I was then introduced to a Birmingham Mind worker - Lorraine, who managed to do an assessment on me. I was due to look at a flat but I was taken into hospital. When I came out my mental health was that bad, I didn’t even want to look at the flat they offered me. But with strong encouragement, I went to look at the place. Donna, a Support Worker, was there who later had a large role to play in my recovery. The biggest turning point was, whilst I was there I had a lot of underlying issues like drug abuse etc. Donna’s help was totally unconditional. She really had to fight to get people from the drug service to work with the mental health team. I began to trust her, even when I got arrested she stood up for me and told the police that my house would still be there for me after. I have been clean now for 6 years.

HOW ARE YOU INVOLVED WITH MIND NOW? I was introduced to the Improving Mind meeting, where I got to meet a lot of other service users all with their own issues. I went on all the Mind training courses and gradually my confidence grew and I began to realize I could give something back, that I could use my own experience to help others.

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I now 

Co-present three training courses. The recovery training I have been doing for three and a half years.

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I have helped with two conferences run by service users and

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I also took place in the collaborative project between Birmingham City Football Club Community Trust and Birmingham Mind, targeting young males – the hardest group to reach at present in relation to their mental health.

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I am on the interview panel to sit in and help when potential staff apply for vacancies.

I find the interviewing really rewarding and it is great to tell the successful applicant when they have been offered the job. I have been doing this for over four years now and have interviewed many of the current staff. Recently I have been taking part in the online interviews as Mind keeps up with the times.

FINAL WORD In the time I have been with Birmingham Mind I have achieved things I never thought I could achieve. I am due to do training outside Mind in July with “The Time to Change” campaign. I took part in the two day train the trainer course at Wembley first, all of which I thought I could never do, but with the encouragement from Mind I did and this makes me proud. I am now moving into a flat with independent living and minimal support, which I am really looking forward to.

Chris Harris

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Fundraising: Getting Started People often have a lot of great fundraising ideas, but sometimes with so many ideas it can be difficult to know where to start. We have put together a list of ideas to help get you started:

1. Get Talking! The best way to get people interested in fundraising for Birmingham Mind is to talk to people. By encouraging staff, their friends and families to talk about Birmingham Mind, in the context of your fundraising activities, you will help to increase public awareness. Although awareness will not itself, raise money it will provide an atmosphere conducive to doing so.

2. Team Building Ask your employees to come up with their own fundraising ideas. At the end of the session, take a vote and the most popular ideas win! This is a great way to get employees enthusiastic about the charity and involved with fundraising. If you are stuck for ideas, we have put together an A-Z of Fundraising Ideas which may help you

3. Be Realistic We all want to raise as much money as possible, but sometimes we have to be realistic. Set an achievable target and then find ways of reaching it. You might want to set up a committee of dedicated employees who will manage your fundraising activities. If you need any help getting started, contact our Fundraising Department, on 0121 608 8001 or email: [email protected]

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Fundraising: Ways you can help Now you’re out of the starting blocks, you can start to look at the main ways you can fundraise for Birmingham Mind.

Events: The easiest and most talked about way to raise money is for individuals or groups of people to organise a fundraising event. Hosting an event in aid of Birmingham Mind is a great way to involve staff, members, customers, clients and suppliers. By holding an event you will be able to improve internal communication, motivate your staff, promote creativity and encourage team spirit. We can work with you to help create a tailored package of fundraising events including sponsored events, workplace activities or individual challenges.

Corporate Sponsorship: By sponsoring an event organized by us, you are not only helping us to increase the overall income of an event but you will also benefit from the brand exposure and PR activity from a sponsorship partnership with Birmingham Mind.

Payroll Giving: Payroll giving is a simple, hassle-free way for you to make regular donations to Birmingham Mind. If your company has a payroll giving scheme, you can authorise your employer to deduct a charitable donation from your salary. Donations are deducted from your salary before PAYE tax is calculated, and therefore immediate tax relief is available. To put it simply, using Payroll Giving means that it costs you less money to make a donation. To see how this works, take a look at the table on the following page: Employee donation received by charity

£5.00 £10.00 £20.00 £100.00

Basic rate taxpayer (20% tax)

Higher rate taxpayer (40% tax)

Highest rate taxpayer (50% tax)

Tax Relief

Cost to Donor

Tax Relief

Cost to Donor

Tax Relief

Cost to Donor

£1.00 £2.00 £4.00 £20.00

£4.00 £8.00 £16.00 £80.00

£2.00 £4.00 £8.00 £40.00

£3.00 £6.00 £12.00 £60.00

£2.50 £5.00 £10.00 £50.00

£2.50 £5.00 £10.00 £50.00

Your company will be able to advise you if such scheme is available and where payroll giving mandate forms can be obtained. For more information on Payroll Giving, please go to www.hmrc.gov.uk

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