The National Funding Scheme has now raised over £250,000 for charities through its DONATE giving platform in just over two years.
Founded in March 2013, DONATE was originally provided specifically for arts and cultural organisations, where it is being used by over 350 art galleries, museums, theatres and heritage sites. It has now been extended to all UK charities.
Notable successes for the platform include the £75,000 raised in the four days following the Battersea Arts Centre fire, over £9,000 raised for the Watts Gallery, £18,000 raised at a charity cricket match (shared between Walking with the Wounded and Combat Stress) and just under £20,000 raised for a landmine charity.
DONATE passes on donors’ details, if they give permission, to the recipient charity. It says that 99% of the donors to Battersea Arts Centre’s emergency appeal asked for their details to be passed on.
The National Funding Scheme sustains its service by charging a small proportion of the Gift Aid that eligible donors donate via the mobile and online platform. When no Gift Aid is added it charges 2.5% of the total gift, “half the rate charged by commercial providers”. By extending the service to all charities, the National Funding Scheme believes it can reduce these fees further.
The service is run by two separate organisations – a technology company and a charity. This governance procedure means that DONATE “can bring in investment for ongoing technical development that the charity would not be able to support”.
