Tag Archives: donations

POST AND DONATE: BRITISH HEART FOUNDATION SHOPS LAUNCH FREE POSTAL DONATION SERVICE

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POST AND DONATE: BRITISH HEART FOUNDATION LAUNCHES FREE POSTAL DONATION SERVICE 

~ Charity retailer calls on the nation to donate pre-loved goods without hitting the high street ~    charity, charity donations, how to give to charity, charity shops, open, what charity shops are open?,  

  

This June the British Heart Foundation (BHF) is launching a new post to donate service, making it even easier for the public to give their decluttered items and support the charity to help save lives. 

 

Throughout June and July the BHF will start to reopen its 750 nationwide shops and stores introducing new measures to keep staff, volunteers and customers safe. As part of these new measures the BHF has launched a postal donation initiative where customers can donate smaller items via post and give to the charity without hitting the shops.  

 

From clothes and books to vintage toys and ornaments, the BHF hopes to receive good quality items that the public have been clearing out while at home. These will be sold either online via the charity’s eBay store or at a BHF shop.  

 

Allison Swaine-Hughes, Retail Director at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Our charity shops run purely on the support of the public, which is why we never take for granted a camera, record or video game that’s donated to us. Every item we sell helps fund our vital research.” 

“Our new postal donation service is quick, easy and free. It’s the perfect solution if your local BHF shop is not yet open and you have items you want to give, or you’re simply not ready to head to the high street.   

 

“Every pound raised in our shops helps us to support the 7.4 million people in the UK living with heart and circulatory diseases, many of whom are at increased risk from Covid-19. Your donations can help us help them.” 

 

Customers can simply head to the webpage, request a freepost label which will be emailed to them and then choose to either print the label off or bring the email in to one of 7,500 nationwide Collect+ drop off points to be printed off there. Packages can be up to 10kg.  

 

In line with Government advice and to keep customers safe, all donations given to the BHF will now be rested for 72 hours before being placed onto the shop floor. Customers will also be able to donate at new contact-free donation points which will be set up at every BHF shop entrance. For larger donations to home stores the BHF will be restarting its free collection service once home stores reopen – ensuring all pick-ups are socially distanced.  

 

Donating unwanted items not only helps fund vital heart research but will also reduce waste and save items from landfill. Last year alone, the BHF saved an incredible 71,000 tonnes of items from landfill and 135,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from being released into the atmosphere.   

 

Just £16 worth of your donations can support an early career scientist in carrying out an hour’s research and £25 gives a researcher an hour’s access to equipment. If your donations raised £100, this would fund a DNA extraction kit to identify genes linked to heart and circulatory diseases. 

To find your local BHF shop visit: www.bhf.org.uk/shop 

 

What BHF would love to see donated: 

·                Electronics – iPhones, iPads and high-end electronics 

·                Clothing, dresses or designer brands if you can spare them 

·                Records – 7″, 10″ and 12″ vinyl records 

·                Video games – vintage console games (1990s/early 2000s) 

·                Shoes – any kind, so long as they’re in good condition!  

·                Collectable items such as coins and stamps 

·                Jewellery  

·                Ornaments 

·                Camera equipment – cameras, tripods, bags, filters, lens 

·                Toys – toy cars, vans, trucks, kid’s dolls and vintage teddy bears 

 

 

From a Mother to Another Is Collecting Again To Reduce Clothes Waste & Help Syrian Refugees

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Frost loves the From a Mother to Another initiative and is proud to support it again this year. 

From a Mother to Another, the initiative from JoJo Maman Bébé, starts collecting again on 22nd Feb 2017. The aim; to reduce the shocking levels of clothing waste that end up in a landfill whilst helping those in need in the UK with distribution via Trussell Trust food banks, and thousands of Syrian refugees living in Lebanon. For full details of how to donate visit http://www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk/FAMTA

JoJo will be collecting good quality outgrown or unwanted baby and children’s clothes in, sizes 0-6 years and children’s shoes.  Customers are requested to make up complete outfits, with shoes in a separate bag and donate at one of their 80 stores across the UK and Ireland. Full list of stores can be found here http://www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk/stores.

Nearly a third of the UK’s clothing ends up in landfill, equating to 350,000 tonnes a year. By extending the life of clothes by just three months of active use, carbon and water waste could be reduced by up to 5-10% a year. Sending good quality, little worn hand-me-downs to those in need would mean they are worn by many more children, extending the clothes lifespan.

In the UK the emergency clothing packs will be distributed by some of the Trussell Trust’s 420 Foodbanks. In Lebanon the packs will be distributed by a number of partner charities on the ground. Helen Frank’s from Trussell Trust explains; “I am delighted Trussell Trust Foodbanks will be participating in the From A Mother To Another campaign for the second year running, it is a natural fit to The Trussell Trust’s ‘More Than Food’ approach, which offers additional services to help alleviate poverty in the UK. Over a third of three-day emergency food supplies provided by Trussell Trust foodbanks go to children in crisis. Last year the packs were gratefully received by over 1000 families” From a Mother to Another Is Collecting Again To Reduce Clothes Waste & Help Syrian Refugees

From a Mother to Another Is Collecting Again To Reduce Clothes Waste & Help Syrian Refugees1

Laura Tenison, founder & CEO of JoJo, visited refugee camps in the Bekaa Valley on the Lebanese Syrian border in early 2016. Laura explains what she found when visiting the camps; “The situation is dire and has not improved over the last 12 months. The millions of women and children living in makeshift tents are in urgent need of emergency humanitarian aid to help until it is safe to travel home – just a few miles across the border. They left Syria with whatever they could carry. Their children have outgrown their clothes long ago and are often in rags. The gift of a FAMTA pack brings tears of gratitude. Children are dying from the cold, we just had to help.”

JoJo Maman Bébé will cover the extensive costs of checking, sorting, shipping, customs clearance and managing the logistics of delivering the parcels to the partner charities in Lebanon and to the Trussell Trust’s Foodbanks across the UK.

 

 

How To Make Money Blogging Part 1

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The Ultimate Guide To Becoming a Successful Blogger , blogging, blogs, how to be a successful blogger, blogger, blogging, Catherine BalavageSo here it is. Number one in how to make money blogging, or with your website or online magazine. It is possible to make money blogging, but you need the knowledge and you also have to work hard. The nature of making money blogging is that you never know how much money you will earn month-to-month or day-to-day. It is precarious and sometimes scary, but with the right guidance it is possible. As long as you work hard and are prepared to adapt with the times. Here is part one, I hope it helps you on your blogging journey. I will be telling you all you need to know about blogging in a series of articles. You can also check out my book, The Ultimate Guide To Becoming a Successful Blogger.

Affiliate Links.

Affiliate links are a great way to make money, even if you have a small blog which doesn’t get a lot of traffic. If you can build your blog up and get loyal readers who trust you and your judgement, then you can earn a lot of money this way.

Working With Brands.

You can earn a lot of money working with brands. Either by sponsored editorial content, featuring their products, or working together to create your own fashion line or perfume. Yes, you CAN do that. You just have to belief in yourself and work hard. (I know I say work hard a lot. I won’t say sorry, a blog is a business and any business requires a lot of work).

Sponsored Posts.

Years ago I earned a reasonable amount from sponsored posts. Then Google changed their policy to penalise sites that paid for links, and those that featured them. The revenue stream dried up overnight and I had to get creative. Now the negative part is out of the way let me tell you that you can still earn from sponsored posts. I know some of the top personal blogs charge about £750, but the sky is the limit. Even sites like the Daily Mail and the Huffington Post feature sponsored posts. Print magazines do a similar thing with their advertorials. Just flick through any magazine and you will see some of these. Oh, and avoid people who want sponsored posts but try to disguise them as ‘guest posts’.

Public Speaking.

I have done public speaking. Sometimes it pays well and other times they will ask you to do it for free, but you can either promote yourself or sell your books.

Advertising.

Banner ads and general advertising doesn’t make that much money. I am sure it can, but it is not the way to get rich, or even wealthy, blogging. It will cover the blogging costs however, and that is worth something.

Freelance writing.

I have been approached by publications and sites to write for them after they have come across my work. It also makes my internet presence more prominent and helps my brand. (And before you roll your eyes, we are all brands now).

Partnering with Brands.

You can make a lot of money doing this. Building relationships with brands and getting your name out there can result in lots of money and will also give a huge boost to your career.

Books and eBooks.

I have written three books and I publicise them through Frost. Our contributing editor Margaret Graham is also a bestselling author. Write about a subject you know, or even write a novel. If people are reading your blog they already love your writing.

Selling Your Blog.

In 2011 Arianna Huffington sold The Huffington Post for $315 million. Yes, $315 million. That may be an extreme example, but you can sell your blog for quite a bit of money. Some small blogs even sell for £20,000.

Vlogging.

Vlogging is huge. There are more YouTube millionaires than ever. You can earn relatively good money from this, but it is a lot of work and an overcrowded market. The good news is that Amazon are taking on YouTube with Amazon Direct Video so you can make money streaming your videos there too. I will write about this more soon.

Consulting.

You can consult by helping businesses and brands to build their blogs. Either by writing, or by giving your creative (and tech, if you are so inclined) opinion.

Subscriptions.

You can put things behind a paywall and charge for it. This does work with certain content.

Donations.

I noticed on The Guardian today that they have a donate button at the bottom with the – very true- comment that the powerful will not investigate themselves. If they can do it, you can.

Classifieds.

Old school, but sites like Gumtree and Craigslist charge for people to list and make a good amount of money.

Merchandise and Selling Products.

Plenty of sites sell T shirts and such. You could also make your own products.

Public Appearances.

If your blog does very well you can do a Paris Hilton and get paid simply to appear at clubs and events. You may have to wave though. Hard life.

Doing Talks or Teaching.

You can do talks, teach and do workshops. Offer people a solution to their problems and you are doing good while making some money. Pass on your knowledge and educate people.

I will be going through all of the different revenue streams in more detail. It is an amazing time to be a content creator. There are so many creative ways to build your brand and make money. Good luck and I will help you on your journey.

You can also read how to make your blog posts go viral here.

Words For The Wounded Writing Prize

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walking wounded competitionFrost Magazine has came across a very worthy charity thanks to Jane Cable: Words For The Wounded was launched by Margaret Graham, an author at Random House.

Margaret said; “I launched the charity Words for the Wounded  last year and we raise money via writing competitions and donations to help in the recovery of our wounded service personnel. This year we are supporting the Creative Arts Unit at Tedworth House Recovery Centre. Every penny from the entry fees and donations goes to the wounded. We raise money for the prizes in other ways. My son and son-in-law have been noble and done various Ironman marathons and Triathlons for us but this year my colleague and old school friend, Jan Speedie, and I are giving them a break and doing a tandem sky dive. Yes, I know. My grandchildren say the same, ‘You’re mad.’ But needs must.  My agent despairs of the lengths to which I will go to be strapped to a handsome young man.

Words for the Wounded has a 1st prize of £250, 2nd £100 and 3rd £50, and publication in Writers’ Forum magazine. Entry fee is £4.50. We ask for poetry, non-fiction or fiction up to a maximum of 400 words on the subject of The Journey. It can be physical, emotional or both. The closing date is 11 March.”

Margaret also has a W4W blog which includes writing tips www.wordsforthewounded.blogspot.co.uk. 

Margaret went on to say that “the majority of those injured are under 25. These are life changing injuries and they will need help to recover their self-confidence and independence to get the best from their long lives.”

I am sure you will agree this is a great charity and an equally great competition. Enter now and spread the word.