Fundraising challenge launched in bid to support fire service key workers

The Fire Family Challenge offers supporters and traditional event fundraisers an opportunity to set aside the disappointment of cancelled or postponed events, test the lockdown limits of their personal space and join together as a 'fire family' to support the thousands of key workers operational on the Coronavirus front line.

The pandemic has brought the Charity’s traditional fundraising to a halt, with the cancellation or postponement of countless events and challenges across the UK and overseas. Furthermore, The Fire Fighters Charity doesn't meet the criteria outlined by Government in regards to grant support.

With its donors and supporters usually raising around £10 million per annum to fund its health and well-being services, the Charity has estimated that it may only raise around 50% of its usual fundraising income during this lockdown period. The impact of this could well curtail the Charity’s ambitions and bold plans for the future unless an alternate way to raise that income is found.

Addressing the shortfall 

The Fire Family Challenge seeks to address this fundraising shortfall by encouraging supporters to take on a personal challenge or come together as a team to take on something special.

The Charity has provided a host of ideas to support challengers, from garden Olympics to sponsored silences. It has also provided simple=to-follow guides for challengers to set up JustGiving fundraising pages or Facebook Fundraisers and is offering a range of digital awards to those taking part.

Regional fundraising team manager Natasha Mason told Fire Safety Matters: “This is a great opportunity for our supporters to do something special for the UK’s incredible fire services family. Our firefighters are working in extraordinary circumstances at the front line of this national fight against Coronavirus, so the Fire Family Challenge will hopefully offer some light relief and help us to raise some much-needed funds at a time when our fundraising has otherwise dried up.”

Challengers can sign up for the Fire Family Challenge at www.firefighterscharity.org.uk/firefamilychallenge and use the hashtag #FireFamilyChallenge to see what else is going on across the UK.

Lifelong support

The Fire Fighters Charity offers specialist and lifelong support for members of the UK Fire and Rescue Services community, empowering individuals to achieve mental, physical and social well-being throughout their lives.

The Fire Fighters Charity is reliant on donations from the fire and rescue community and the general public to meet the £10 million cost of operating its centre and community-based services to support over 55,000 members of the UK’s Fire and Rescue Services and their dependants as well as retired members of the UK's fire services community.