
Designing your Challenge
You can simply resolve to cover your chosen distance at your own pace, in your own style, during November. Maybe a short walk, run or bike ride daily, or a longer one a few times a week. But if you're looking for ways to spice it up a little, here are some possibilities:
- If the weather is against you, an easy 20-minute aerobic workout, or even 12 minutes of jogging on the spot indoors also counts. There's a vast number of YouTube tutorials that can help keep things interesting, even if the scenery isn't changing. Here's a couple to get you started indoor running 2.4km (1.5miles) or indoor Bouncy Walk 1.6km (1 mile)
- Maybe you know fellow fitness enthusiasts who have home exercise equipment, say a stationary bike or rowing machine. Why not set up a virtual "race"? Schedule a Zoom, Skype or Google Meet, and see who gets to 10, 20 or even 50kms first.
- Not ready to brave the streets or parks in full-body lycra? See how quickly a few laps of even a small garden mounts up. Download a fitness tracking app and see how many kms you rack up just with average daily activities, like shopping or picking up after the kids.
- Install a free step counter app on your smartphone and see how many steps you can rack up when pacing back and forth across the living room while bingeing on Netflix.
- Dance your distance. We've found that the tango, the waltz and any number of other steps are good for covering ground. Any kind of dance moves will rack up the steps on the average pedometer if you do it hard enough. Who would not sponsor a dance challenge?
How to maximise your fundraising
- Keep us in the loop and join our Challenge Facebook group. We love to hear from you and we know how inspirational your stories are to others, so send us ideas, experiences or updates on your progress.
- Tell your story. People will care more and give more if they know why you care. Fundraisers who tell the story of why they are involved tend to raise on average 74% more than those who do not.
- Put a face to the name. Fundraisers who upload a profile photo raise substantially more than those who don’t.
- Share early and shamelessly! Share your page via email, social media and any other channels available (local newspapers, radio phone-ins, personal blogs, whatever) as often and as loudly as you can. Studies have shown that people who share their page within an hour of creating it generally raise 52% more than everyone else.
- Update your fanbase. People who actively share their progress, which you can do automatically by syncing up your fitness tracker (Strava or Fitbit) to your sponsorship page, raise on average 40% more than those who don’t.
- Be your own biggest fan! This is such a vital cause and by donating to your own page, you show your own commitment to it. In general, those whose own names appear prominently in their list of donors tend to raise over 120% more on average.
- Don't be shy about increasing your target if you can. People tend to donate less than they might if they see you are very close to your goal, so don't hesitate to raise your target amount if you think you can.
- It ain't over till it's over. Experience has taught those who run similar online sponsorship drives that 20% of donations come in after the challenge is over. So even if you've completed your challenge, it can't hurt to reach out one last time to your sponsors – especially if you have some news or a funny story about what happened during your challenge to share with them. Maybe they'll dig even deeper.
- Don't forget to say thank you to your donors. And please thank them on behalf of Framework as well.
- Don't forget to tag us on social. Using the tag #5050OCF we’ll also be sharing your stories on our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds, as well as listing a running total of kms covered and monies raised.
FAQs
What is Framework?
Framework is a charity delivering housing, health, employment, support and care services to people with a diverse range of needs across the East Midlands and South Yorkshire – in Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Sheffield.
Regardless of their past, or the challenges they face, we empower people to achieve stability, independence and social inclusion because we believe that everyone has the right and potential to achieve a better future.
What is Homeless to Home: The Challenge 2020?
Homeless to Home: The Challenge 2020 is a sponsored fundraising event you can complete anywhere, in your own time and at your own pace between 1 and 30 November. You can choose to walk, run, roll, skate, cycle or swim any distance according to your ability and inclination.
When is the Challenge taking place?
You can take the Challenge anytime between 1 and 30 November 2020.
How will the Challenge work?
You decide how and when you complete the challenge. Follow the simple steps to sign up, choose a distance that suits your ability and then walk, run, roll, swim or cycle the distance – whatever works for you. Set up your Just Giving fundraising page and ask your family and friends for sponsorship. Every penny you raise will go towards our work that’s helping to end homelessness by tackling rough sleeping. You go the distance and we go the extra mile for homeless and vulnerable people!
How do I enter the Challenge?
It’s simple. You choose your challenge, set up your fundraising page and start fundraising. Wherever and however you take the challenge is up to you, as long as you complete your challenge between 1 and 30 November. We’ll be with you (virtually) every step of the way!
Are there any registration or participation fees?
Signing up to the Challenge is free! It's a challenge though, so we do encourage you to raise funds for Framework through sponsorship, to power our work supporting homeless and vulnerable people across Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire.
Is there an age limit for the Challenge?
There’s no age limit and we welcome people of all ages. However, you need to be over 18 years old to register. If you’re under 18, please ask a parent or guardian to sign up on your behalf.
What happens after I sign up and what support will I receive from Framework?
We’re here to support you on your Homeless to Home Challenge. We’ll be in touch with emails to give you inspiration, motivation, top tips and fundraising resources and ideas. – see the information above! You can access all this information here and get advice from other participants on our Facebook group.
What is JustGiving and how do I use it?
JustGiving is an online fundraising platform which you can use to collect your donations. Your fundraising page will be set up automatically when you sign up for Homeless to Home: The Challenge 2020. To access your page go to the JustGiving website and enter the log in details you supplied when you signed up. If you signed up online, your confirmation email will also have a link to your page. You can share your page with friends and family to encourage them to donate to your challenge.
How do I get help with my JustGiving fundraising page?
If you need help using your fundraising page, making a donation, or anything else JustGiving related, their dedicated support team can help you out.
You can message JustGiving through their contact form if you need any help or can’t find what you’re looking for. Alternatively, check out the JustGiving FAQ page [insert link]. You can also email us at fundraising@frameworkha.org or call 0115 970 9558.
Can I track mileage on my JustGiving page using a fitness tracker?
Yes, you can track your distance and link it to your JustGiving page via the Strava app. This will ensure your mileage is automatically recorded and added to your page. If you are unable to link to this app (or forget to track your activity) you can manually add the mileage to your page later.
What is Strava and how do I use it?
Strava is a fitness app which tracks and records your distance. JustGiving is partnered with Strava which means you can link your fundraising page to Strava and your page will be updated every time you complete a distance. That way, your donors can see how you’re getting on. Fundraisers who use this feature raise an average 46% more!
To link your page to Strava, make sure you're logged into your JustGiving account, then go to your fundraising page. You'll see a button in the bottom left of your screen with the option to 'edit page'. Once in the 'edit page' pop out window, click on 'fitness' and you'll see a button to connect to Strava.
What happens if I only use the fitness app to track some of my activities and forget to use it for some?
If it’s linked to your fundraising page, we’ll know about any of the miles you complete using your fitness app. You just need to let us know about the rest of them by manually updating your fundraising page. Just remember: don’t manually log any miles that you’ve used a fitness app to track, as we’ll already have those logged.
What if I don't want to use a tracking app? How can I track the miles I've completed?
If you don’t want to use a fitness app, you can still easily keep track of your miles through your fundraising page. You can do this by manually updating your JustGiving fundraising page.
Can I meet other people taking part?
Yes, virtually! Once you've signed up please join our Facebook Group at www.facebook.com/groups/homelesstohomechallenge/ to chat with other people taking part in the Challenge.
How do I fundraise?
It’s simple! As soon as you sign up to your challenge your JustGiving fundraising page will be created for you. All income is transferred directly to Framework. You’ll be able to share your progress on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter too. And we’ll provide fundraising tips and support throughout your journey.
Is there a minimum fundraising amount?
Yes, there is a minimum target of £150. However we encourage you set you own fundraising target and maximise your fundraising total by asking your friends and family for sponsorship. Raise your first £50 and we will send you a free Homeless to Home Challenge T-shirt.
How do I get a Homeless to Home Challenge t-shirt?
Take the challenge and raise a minimum of £50 and we’ll send your T-shirt. We aim to deliver the T-shirt to you in a fortnight but regret we are unable to guarantee this.
How do I get a Homeless to Home medal?
You will receive a virtual badge when you complete each stage of your challenge – when you log your first activity, at the half way stage and when you meet your target.
Our top three fundraisers will receive an actual bronze, silver or gold ‘winner’s medal’. Serious bling!
What is Gift Aid?
Gift Aid enables charities to claim 25p on every £1 donation you make, at no extra cost to you or your supporters. For UK taxpayers JustGiving allows your supporters to automatically Gift Aid their donation. Please note, we can only claim Gift Aid on personal donations.
How do I pay in my money?
Ask people to donate directly to your fundraising page. That way, the money will come to us automatically. If you’ve collected cash then you can pay in the money to your fundraising page using a credit or debit card.
Is there a deadline for paying in donations?
The deadline for fundraising is no later than 31 December 2020 however monies may be received after that date.
Firstly, make sure you're logged into your JustGiving account, then go to your fundraising page. You'll see a button in the bottom left of your screen with the option to 'edit page'. Once in the 'edit page' pop out window, click on 'fitness' and you'll see a button to connect to Strava.