how can I give to charity & be 100% anonymous?

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I work in a local authority and a friend runs a very small charity for kids with special needs. we sometimes work with them to run events etc. over the last 5 years, I've come to know the charity quite well and I think they do great work, but with lockdown etc, they have been really struggling.

I've recently inherited some money and can afford to give away £5K or so. I'd like to give it to this charity. BUT - I have to be 100% sure that my colleague will not know that the gift comes from me. If she finds out, that will change our working relationship and she will always feel indebted to me. Plus it would feel like showing off that I am rich, which I don't want to do (and I'm not really rich).

So how can I make this gift?

I tried giving a test £10 through paypal on the charity website and selected all the anonymous options, but 30 mins later I get a text from my friend saying 'thanks for donating'.

I could ask DH to make the donation (we don't share a surname) but it could still be linked back to me.

Do I need to go via a lawyer? any other options?

Bank cheque

Money laundering regs seem to require charities to know who is giving to them these days. But if you ticked everything anon she shouldn’t have had your details. Can you do it not on their website but via virgin moneygiving or similar?

It's harder to give money away than the telly etc would have you believe. When I've donated I've been hounded for more, sometimes for years. I wish there was a 'one and done' option.

Get it in used notes and post it under registered post?

Do you make charitable donations at any other time? If so it might be worth setting up a CAF account, which you can set up to be anonymous.

Have they got a Just Giving page?
We get anonymous donations through that.

If you give £5k and you see this friend often it will change your friendship. Because you will know you gave it. You might start resenting her choices or what is done with the money. Also if she found out she would feel like a twit and wonder why you did not tell her. Why not do it differently? Why not donate a few hundred each year, you might be able to get tax relief on that. But tell her.

set up a Charities Aid Foundation account and deposit the money there, then arrange for CAF to pass it to your nominated charity anonymously. someone at CAF will know it was you but your friend never will.

CAF looks like just the thing I need, thanks all.