'FareShare at Christmas' Appeal

FareShare needs your support this Christmas so we can continue to provide our essential food at a time when people are in most need of a good nutritious meal in the company of people who care for them.

.....Not Just for Christmas
The issue of food poverty isn't just at Christmas, and vulnerable people need access to this quality nutritious food all year round.

FareShare works 12 months of the year to ensure that this quality food is delivered to people who really need it, and the funds raised through the Appeal will help towards guaranteeing that we can keep our fleet of delivery vehicles on the road providing our food delivery service at Christmas and throughout the year.

"We just couldn't function without FareShare"
Julie Fyfe, Deptford Churches Centre (day centre for vulnerable adults, London)

Please click on the below headings to be taken to the relevant section:

Fundraising with Colleagues, Friends & Family
Company donations & support
Benefits to supporting
Last year's Appeal

Fundraising with Colleagues, Friends & Family
Get involved in one of our festive fundraising initiatives with friends or colleagues:

• Skip Pudding, Fight Hunger - donate the cost of your pudding at your office Christmas dinner to the Appeal
• Christmas cards - donating the money you spend on Christmas cards to the Appeal would help FareShare provide food to dozens of homeless & vulnerable people this Christmas.
• FareShare Resolution - Start your New Year's resolutions by becoming a regular giver to FareShare through Payroll Giving or Direct Debit, & help ensure we can provide our support all year round

Remember: £10 a month could help towards 30 homeless people enjoying at least 1 square meal everyday.

For a Fundraising Ideas Pack, email Christmas@fareshare.org.uk or contact Jonathan Pelluet on 0207 394 2469

Company donations & support
Donating funds to the FareShare at Christmas Appeal means your company will be actively supporting the most vulnerable people in the communities in which your company operates.

Why not use the Appeal to help engage your staff over Christmas, through emotive & festive promotions:

1. Staff Christmas dinner - donate a percentage of the funds your company would normally spend on the office Christmas dinner to the Appeal, so we can provide essential food to those in need.
2. Restaurant promotions - £1 from each Christmas dinner sold in your office restaurant/canteen could be donated to the FareShare at Christmas Appeal

Benefits to supporting
Through supporting the FareShare at Christmas Appeal, there are some great opportunities and benefits to your company, which will engage your staff, clients, and recognise your company's support:

• Your company logo in dedicated adverts running in The Grocer & other key William Reed publications etc
• Your company logo on our website, newsletters & Christmas cards
• Become a dedicated sponsor of FareShare for a month of your choice later in the year

Last year's Appeal
Last year saw FareShare's Christmas Meal Appeal provide the ingredients for a Christmas dinner for all the community organisations we support, which was really well received, and helped guarantee that over 16,000 homeless & vulnerable people enjoyed a Christmas dinner with people who care for them.

However, the Appeal was reviewed and we decided that it needed to better reflect our core values and core activity. The re-named Appeal now focuses on helping us raise the essential funds we need to provide our food service at Christmas and throughout the year, and - where possible - secure long-term 'surplus' food donors. The key reasons for this change have been:

• Listening to our Community Food Network - the community organisations we support have stated they would prefer us to use our limited resources to secure more regular quality 'surplus' food, than source & deliver just one festive meal for their clients.
• Core operation - sourcing & delivering specific Christmas food was deflecting our efforts & focus away from our core operation: trying to divert surplus food from landfill, and provide a regular supply of quality food to more vulnerable people across the UK.
• Mixed messages - asking for donated food for the Appeal conflicts with our "No Good Food Should Be Wasted Campaign", which is becoming an ever more important message of the charity.

The re-focused 'FareShare at Christmas' Appeal is still as strong & tangible as before, but now it is a lot closer to reflecting the core mission & values of FareShare: addressing food poverty & food waste in the UK. Please click here for the 'FareShare at Christmas' leaflet which gives more information.

To see those who supported last year's Appeal, please click here.