What charity should I represent?
Posted by Low-Welder4154@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 28 comments
I plan on running the TCS London Marathon 2027, I am in the process of applying to a few charities to get a charity place. Luckily, my life is all sunshine and rainbows so I've never dealt with a charity to seek help, so I want to run for a charity that does a lot of good work, but doesn't get enough credit for everything they do. My question to everyone here is: what charity should I run for? If you search "TCS London marathon 2027 charity list" it brings up a list of charities with spaces for next year which might make it easier for you guys to reccomend one.
jeminar@reddit
Before given to any charity.
Charities like that are just massive marketing engines, existing to get size and kudos.
Sadly, the charity machines that tend to get everyone's attention, and can secure places at the marathon, are not usually the charities that focus on actually doing good deeds.
PonderingApe90@reddit
Interesting, that does look like a good metric to check. My partner and I are building a non-profit giving app atm (11,000+ charities, www.givewithlegacy.com ) and from this conversation I'm now wondering whether we should enrich the data so that users can search charities based on % spent on charitable activities. Do you think this would be useful, or is there another metric you also prioritise in choosing causes?
jeminar@reddit
I run an informal charity to allow people to manage giving. I think this is a good metric, but also subjective... Some charities obfuscate their costs of generating income through chains of organisations. iirc, RNIB is one where they have separate charities for the collection of money and the spending of money. So the charity that spends the money has 100% of its income on charitable causes.
So, formalising this metric would require an analysis of each one.
I don't necessarily say that rnib is trying to fudge their metrics, and I'm sure there are perfectly good reasons to structure like that.
And final thing... Might not have been rnib. Don't want to bad mouth the innocent.
But. I do remember that DEC, and MSF are ones that have poor metrics.
PonderingApe90@reddit
Thanks so much for the thoughtful reply, it really help us to understand the nuances here.
No-Door-3181@reddit
There must be something you're passionate about, there's usually a charity connected to it. If you're already aware of the list, why not choose the one that speaks to you the most?
For example, if you have a pet, choose a Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, or if you like reading, the Children's Book Project, something in that vein.
StevenXSG@reddit
Some of the children's charities are very hard hitting when you get involved with them, even if you have never had a childhood illness or have children who have or anything related, you appreciate what you have got.
retrolental_morose@reddit
My wife works for MACS, which is a charity supporting some blind people. Not us, we're not their type of blind, but I've volunteered to help out with them and the kids and parents are genuinely very grateful.
babyscully@reddit
It’s a tiny charity supporting children and adults with underdeveloped or no eyes
vibeupyourlife@reddit
I'd suggest you're local air ambulance, they're normally all reliant on public donations and you never know who might need one some day. Alternatively, see if your local area has a blood bikes scheme again a very important service that relies on donations but I can't see too many on the official list so they may not offer spots.
Antique_Location_514@reddit
It’s not a charity but a go fund me I don’t know if that’s allowed but there’s a boy Michal Jan Winter who’s got harlequin ichthyosis, which essentially means he’s got a rare genetic disease. It’s to do with his skin where it’s continuously growing and when he was born the drs suggested leaving him to pass away which is heartbreaking for any parent to be told… it doesn’t look pretty but this little boy is so kind and brave! His treatment is very expensive which is where the money goes for especially on creams for skin skin as otherwise it can break.. Feel free to pop me a message if you want any information!
orange_fudge@reddit
As others noted the places go with a specific list of partner charities… but the Unique charity which supports rare genetic disorders is on the list!
ddbbaarrtt@reddit
That’s not how charity places for marathons work unfortunately
OP is asking about charity places where you commit to raising a certain amount for a charity like Dementia UK to get one of their places. If OP got in through the standard ballot they’d still be allowed to raise money for this boy with GoFundMe, but it wouldn’t be a charity place
DemonicFrog@reddit
They wouldn't have a guaranteed place which is what OPS looking for.
Antique_Location_514@reddit
Ohhhh I see what you mean! I’ve never ran a marathon with a charity or a marathon in its own right either haha
RoyalPossession7164@reddit
I like anything to do with animals
killer_by_design@reddit
Abigail's footsteps is an incredible baby loss charity in Kent that makes huge huge direct impacts on bereaved parents lives every single day.
They provide cold cots so you can spend more time with your baby after they've passed, even bringing them home. They provide training to midwives and consultants, they provide free bereavement counselling to parents, and they pay for a huge amount of support to bereaved parents.
Just £10 will pay for two SD cards so a parent can take home photos of their baby.
I can't begin to explain how relentlessly they support bereaved parents and how far they make every single penny go.
They're amazing. Amazing.
They've helped me and my wife more than I could ever play forward. I've raised enough for one cold cot in my son's name and I'll forever keep trying to support them.
TellMeItsN0tTrue@reddit
Hospices and air ambulances are always a good shout, looks like there's plenty of hospices in the list and most of the air ambulances so you should be able to find one local to you. These don't get enough public funding and will be doing good in your local community. You also never know when you or someone you care about could need them.
Suspicious_Tax8577@reddit
There's very likely some tiny MH charities near you that do a ridiculous amount on a shoestring budget and step in when the NHS decide we're not worthy of care. There are two peer support groups that I probably owe my life to - unfortunately neither have a place for the London Marathon.
Otherwise, Employ-ability, they're helping disabled graduates into employment post university, because disabled doesn't mean unable. Tiny little charity - Tab and Sarah are amazing.
Silhouette_Sneezes@reddit
Cystic Fibrosis Trust
whatmichaelsays@reddit
My personal rule when it comes to supporting charities is to find one that's small and find one that's local. £100 to those charities means a lot more and goes a lot further than it does in a big national charity with big infrastructure costs, big marketing budgets and CEOs and a board to pay.
I also tend to warm to ones that deal with "hiding in plain sight" issues. For example, I did some volunteering at a local charity that tries to tackle child bed poverty - essentially providing beds, bedding and PJs for kids who don't have a bed to sleep in (due to poverty, insecure housing or fleeing domestic abuse). It's a problem that many people don't realise exists, a problem that often sees a lot of victim blaming (the usual stuff you hear about benefit claimants) and as a result, it struggles for attention.
ddbbaarrtt@reddit
OPs looking for one of the official charity partners though, and unfortunately they tend not to be the smaller charities
mrfatchance@reddit
Run for Everyones invited
Mental_Body_5496@reddit
Just looked at the list.
I would go for a smaller charity charity
Meningitis research
Children with cancer
Make a wish
Teenage cancer trust
Sense
Starlight
Phab
Caudwell
Matt Hampson Foundation
Roald Dahl's Marvelous children's charity
Noah's Ark Hospice
DameKumquat@reddit
Age UK have great advisors and support, but old people aren't cute or fluffy so don't get much support. Various dementia and arthritis charities. Bladder and bowel disease. Local hospices.
Friend worked for some small charities dealing with the above and often they were desperate to find someone to take up a place near the time as invariably someone dropped out.
bishibashi@reddit
You’ll find the lesser known ones easier to get places for too, as they’re more difficult to raise money for.
I ran it a few things including London for Anthony Nolan, as a friend died of an infection after a successful bone marrow transplant and leukaemia treatment. Great charity, but not necessarily easy to get one of their spots.
cmsmk@reddit
I'd say ones that are closest to family, friends that have helped them, doesn't neccessarily have to be close to you. I have had no help from charities yet I would run for cancer research or something because my grandfather passed from that.
If you want an idea though, I'd highly suggest Samaritans or something like that.
VolcanicBear@reddit
I'd always recommend the BDFA.
Lost my cousin to Batten Disease 2 days before her 11th birthday, did my first half ironman to raise money for them.
AutoModerator@reddit
Please help keep AskUK welcoming!
When replying to submission/post please make genuine efforts to answer the question given. Please no jokes, judgements, etc. If a post is marked 'Serious Answers Only' you may receive a ban for violating this rule.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!
Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.