How we fundraise

Learn more about the different ways that we fundraise

Our fundraising promise

We're committed to being completely open and transparent about our fundraising. 

We're registered with the Fundraising Regulator and comply with their Code of Fundraising Practice and The Fundraising Promise

Fundraising Regulator logo

We promise that our fundraising will always aim to be:

  • honest and open
  • clear
  • respectful
  • fair and reasonable
  • accountable

We are committed to following our vulnerable person policy in all our fundraising activities. 

You can read more about our commitment to our supporters in our supporter charter.

We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data and being transparent about how we collect and use your data. We will comply with any data protection legislation currently in force. Our privacy notice, together with our terms of use, explains how we use any personal information that you provide or which is provided to us by third parties.

The ways we fundraise

Like most major UK charities, we raise funds from individuals in many different ways, including:

  • face-to-face fundraising
  • telephone fundraising
  • direct mail

We promote a variety of fundraising products as we recognise that people like to support us in different ways.

Face-to-face fundraising

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This is a way to talk to members of the public about what we do and how they can support us. Our fundraisers have conversations with people in the street, in train stations or shopping centres and on people's doorsteps.

Coronavirus has had a huge impact on young people across the UK and we’re beginning to see the long-term impact that this crisis will have on children and young people now and into the future. We need to be there to support these vulnerable young people in the years ahead and face-to-face fundraising is a cost-effective way of generating long term support through regular gifts, which are one of our most important sources of income. 

We are committed to the safety and wellbeing of our fundraisers and the communities they work in, and have adapted our fundraising methods to ensure that Government and NHS advice is followed. Fundraisers must adhere to social distancing and additional hygiene measures, and their interactions with the public will be contactless to ensure that we are being as safe as possible. We will continue to monitor the situation and keep our activities under review.

Our fundraisers operate all over the UK throughout the year.

If you need reassurance that a fundraiser is legitimate or you have another query, email our Supporter Care team at [email protected] or call them on 0800 008 7005.

Our face-to-face fundraisers:

  • wear Barnardo's branded clothing
  • display photo identification stating whether they work for our In House team or are employed by an agency on our behalf
  • will tell you if they work for an agency (and how much the agency will be paid and how much we expect to raise from the campaign) or if they are working In House for us as a paid fundraiser if you make a financial payment

Our agencies use digital tablets to capture a donor’s details, the screens on these devices will clearly display the Barnardo’s logo. Any data collected on iPads is securely encrypted and transferred in accordance with GDPR, so no data is stored or accessible from the device.

Telephone fundraising

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Telephone fundraising allows us to raise money in a cost-effective way, as well as engage in thousands of conversations each year with supporters.

This form of fundraising gives supporters the opportunity to ask questions about our work and discuss the different ways in which they can support us.AnchorWe only call supporters who have given us permission to do so.

Our telephone fundraisers will:

  • say their name and that they are calling on behalf of Barnardo’s at the start of the telephone conversation
  • check that you are happy to take the call
  • tell you if the call is being recorded for training and monitoring purposes
  • if you make a financial payment, will tell you that they work for an agency along with how much the agency will be paid and how much we expect to raise from the campaign

We work with a range of professional telemarketing agencies. 

We will only call you if you’ve given us consent to do so. We limit the number of times we contact you, so you will only hear from us a maximum of twice throughout the year to thank you for your donations and talk to you about ways you can support Barnardo’s. We do not take part in ‘cold’ calling. However, if you no longer wish to receive calls from us or if you’re unhappy with any aspect of a call that you have received, please contact our Supporter Care team.

We run telephone appeals throughout the year. This is a cost-effective way of fundraising that enables us to speak directly to our supporters about the important work we are doing to support vulnerable children and young people throughout the UK.

Direct debits provide steady and long-term income, which enables us to commit to long-term projects and be there for the children and young people that need us most, now more than ever.

Our professional telemarketing fundraisers are paid to fundraise on our behalf and will inform you how their pay is calculated in connection with the appeal during the call. They are required to follow rules set out by the Fundraising Regulator to ensure you are informed and never feel pressured to set up a regular donation. We closely monitor our agencies to ensure they’re following the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Practice and are delivering the exemplary standards of customer service that we expect.

​​​​​How we train our fundraisers

We ensure that:

  • all our fundraisers have intensive training and receive regular briefing sessions to ensure that they are working to best practice and to the charity’s guidelines set out by the Institute of Fundraising and Fundraising Regulator
  • we regularly monitor and review all our fundraisers to ensure they adhere to the Code of Fundraising practice
  • every agency we work with has a vulnerable person policy in place in line with the best practice guidance from the Institute of Fundraising. We also have our own vulnerable person policy and are committed to following this in all our fundraising activities
  • where allegations are made against our agencies about their fundraising practices we reserve the right to pause/suspend/cancel activity with them while the allegations are investigated

If you have any concerns about the conduct of someone representing us, please call our Supporter Care team on 0800 008 7005. You can also email them: [email protected]

Our lotteries and raffles

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Our weekly lottery, raffles and workplace lottery are great ways for supporters to help raise vital funds for children across the UK, while also being in with the chance of winning amazing prizes.

We are committed to operating our gambling products in a socially responsible way and take steps to ensure we protect vulnerable people, such as minimising and preventing underage gambling by limiting entry to those aged 16 or above or engaging with those who cannot control their gambling through self-exclusion. You can read our responsible gaming policy and find out how to self-exclude here. You can also read our ​​​​​​raffle terms and conditionsweekly lottery terms and conditions and our workplace lottery terms and conditions.

Our mail to you

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Writing to you – known as 'direct mail' – is a cost-effective way for charities to talk to people about Barnardo’s, what we do and how they can support our work

If you are an existing supporter and would like to change your contact preferences please call our Supporter Care team on 0800 008 7005. You can also email them at [email protected]

If you would like to be kept informed by email please sign up to our monthly e-newsletter. We’ll use your details provided to tell you about our work and ways you can support us in the future including appeals, campaigning, events and volunteering.

We often include a low-cost gift in your mailing, such as a calendar of children's artwork, handy address stickers, a pen or Christmas cards. We hope our supporters will share them with friends and family to help raise awareness of our work. The amount of donations raised from these mailings far outweighs the cost of the gift.