To be really irritated by Children in Need

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Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with the concept of helping CIN. But it seems that it's schools which are targeted for the fund raising. Schools which include the very children the charity is trying to help. So schools are asked to hold special days and raise money, asking those very children and families who are in need to give money they don't have. Isn't this just twisted?

to clarify my post about the TV on CIN being tedious, i meant all the zelebraties out there, being wacky and zany and 'ooh look at me'. . I also dont like the enforced participation of these kinds of fund raisers, yes you can abstain if you really want to, but its not easy is it?

My 2 DC are going in to school on non-uniform day, with their 1s (or whatever it is there, i'm a out at work mum, OH is the SAHP) and they will take part and do their bit.

I think though to have a theme of superheros is a bit crap - book day was great, cos you just picked a character in a book - and you could really go as anyone, with stuff you already have

My DCs school always say each child HAS to bring a fiver EACH even if they are from the same family! No way am I giving fifteen quid along with all the other sponsoring and events I am doing for CIN just so the school can look good in the papers for raising so much.

The presenters certainly used to get paid - I worked for the BBC many moons ago so was aware of this. They were paid by the BBC though, from the programme/department budget, not out of money raised. I would assume it was the same now.

I don't mean this to sound snippy, but I'm genuinely curious how many people get the chance to feed back to the schools about the way these things are handled? I've brought it up at our parent council a few times (mainly - give us more than a day or so notice, please try to make it something that everyone can participate in without having to buy something) and I have noticed a bit of a change. Hard to do it in a way that doesn't come across as criticising their ideas, but just to remind them that not everyone has time and money to come up with costumes at the drop of a hat.

I think our school are also fairly good at glossing over children who can't spare the money. There's also no pressure on those whose parents choose not to do the Christmas shoebox appeal (I think there is a bit of talking it up in assembly, but we just have a chat with DD about choosing an alternative).

I gave feedback last year around CiN time. The head took it on board and they started to ask for donations rather than set amounts which a lot of parents were a lot happier with. They've changed it back and are asking for set amounts again.

Thankfully they haven't had a sponsored event this term - last year we had CiN, Poppies, sponsored event, Christmas Fayre non-uniform in exchange for specified items for each class and the Christmas Fayre itself within 3 weeks. That was on top of harvest non-uniform for food donations, Eid and Christmas parties we had to send in prepared food for, baking money, photographs, milk money, different themed school dinners every other week - it was money on top of money last year.

Sounds like an expensive school! I wonder if they'd do better in terms of donations and goodwill if they eased up on the pressure?

Fanjo as several people have pointed out its not just £1, its a few pounds each child and a costume, I'd be quite happy to send my DC in with £1 each, or even the £3 each the school actually asks for, and the DC wear their weather appropriate own clothes but impractical themes are an absolute pain and I fail to see how wearing a thin superhero costume, or pyjamas, or whatever the next stupid theme they pick is on a 2 mile walk to school in November is helping anyone more than paying to wear their own clothes would.

so ask the school to do something else, but boycotting CIN is not the answer IMO

The alternative is to do CiN as part of a charity rotation, as opposed to boycotting it. It's the ubiquitousness of it that I object to, as the expense of smaller (and just as deserving) charities.

I'm not sure people here understand what children in need is.

You realize it gives grants to other smaller charities which apply for them?

exactly jason

Yes, Jason, and as I said above, the restrictions placed on the bidding charities are often very unhelpful, and those smaller charities go under because they can't pay their core staff.

You realize it gives grants to other smaller charities which apply for them?

According to some reports upthread, it is very very difficult to get these grants to keep your smaller charity going so a lot have to close as people simply aren't donating to them.

Yes Jason, I get that - and I base my judgement of it on the same things that LineRunner describes.

So I could donate £50 to CiN, and hope that my favourite local charity (which offers counselling support to young teenagers) finally manages to make a successful bid by conjuring up some new kind of innovative service, when their existing service is actually excellent and much-needed and has a long waiting list - or I can just give the local charity the £50 and be certain that they'll definitely have it and can use it towards whatever is necessary to keep the core service going.

or even better you could Gift it to them, that way they get the full amount.

Great idea - local charities of our choosing get the benefit from the whole amount through gift aid, as opposed to donating to the behemoth that is CiN

One of the most restrictive rules on a lot of grants from the big bodies is that they won't fund smaller charities' existing salaries.

But those salaries are usually for the core service workers, delivering the stuff that makes the difference.

I wish that rule could be changed, especially when council grants are being cut and cut to these smaller projects.

If you want to do that you can.

I'm not sure people who are donating the CIN have some plan to stop you donating to other charities though...

I can see the need for both though - some local charities will not get the support they need. They may be unable to raise enough funds locally, they may struggle in competition with other local charities. I don't have a problem with umbrella charity organisations - there does however seem to be an issue with the way schools in particular are approaching this though.

No, I'm quite sure there is no evil plan to stop donations to other charities - but for many families with children at schools and youth organisations which have signed up to CiN (or Pudey's birthday, as it's known at DC3's school ), there isn't a bottomless pit of money from which to make charitable donations.

[quote]Pudey's birthday, as it's known at DC3's school[/quote]

Why don't they just tell them the truth?

They do - but it's also known as Pudsey's birthday. And for £1 (on top of the money they are to bring on Friday) they can buy their very own Pudsey bear

It s not boycotting CIN to choose not to donate to them. There are hundreds, probably thousands of charities that I don't donate to because I already have my chosen charities, but that doesn't mean I'm boycotting them.

It would be amazing if the BBC decided to change CIN into an organisation that promoted the smaller charities it supports in their own names and facilitated fundraising for them through their ability to publicise it. There could still be one big day a year for it and a long TV show dedicated to it, but it could encourage people to think about giving to a local organisation which they might then find out a bit more about and end up supporting them more regularly. And it would get around the problem of small charities being unable to finance their basic running costs without jumping through hoops.

so ask the school to do something else, but boycotting CIN is not the answer IMO

Believe me I have asked the schools to do something else but all 6 schools my mum and i have children at have said exactly the same thing, schools take their theme from what CiN decide the theme is each year, as do the play-schools, youth groups etc. It really wouldn't kill whoever chooses the main CiN theme to think about practicalities.

I'm not boycotting CiN at all, I've already said I will give them the donation, I will also have to dress my DC up as otherwise they will be the only ones at their schools not dressed up and I remember being the odd child out all too well, I just wish CiN would think a bit more.