Sign in here for Giving Week 2015: nominate your favourite organisation, charity or worthy cause

[JustineMumsnet]

Hello, hello

As (hopefully) lots of you will remember, last year we ran the inaugural Mumsnet Giving Week, raising nearly £23k (with MNHQ match-funding) for five MNer-nominated causes.

The idea is that you lovely lot use this thread to put forward the charities, organisations and good causes that you’d like to benefit - and we at MNHQ will pick five to be the focus of a week-long Mumsnet-wide fundraising drive in June. As last year, we will match-fund the amount raised by the end of the week (up to £25k, just in case any donors turn out to be Bill Gates).

A few principles: ideally the organisations chosen won’t be huge, national charities that already get a lot of coverage and fund-raising welly; they don’t have to be registered charities (our partners at JustGiving will do a bit of due diligence to make sure any that are chosen are legit organisations); and we’re on the lookout for a spread of organisations that reflect MNers’ concerns and interests. Last year the chosen organisations were the PDA Society (providing support for people with a little-known behavioural condition); the MNer-driven Woolly Hugs; Women’s Aid; Free Cakes for Kids; and Haven House Children’s Hospice.

And because we also want to make sure that the causes are ones that existing Mumsnetters have settled on, we’re only going to shortlist projects suggested by Mumsnetters who are registered as of now. (Apologies to newbies who join after this point, but there’s always next year.)

We’ll be partnering up with JustGiving, which will be organising the fundraising element and will also be making a donation to the chosen causes.

You’ve got until May 22 to nominate good causes, using this thread. So get cracking, and as ever do put any queries or comments here as well.

Magic breakfast (because I volunteer for a local breakfast club and think it's a travesty that some children are not fed in the UK in the 21stC) and:
52 lives, The Biscuit Fund & Trethosa Hut project all sound particularly amazing (amidst all the other amazing nominees)
Great initiative MN

Hi,

I would like to nominate FOBE (Friends of Bright Eyes) www.fobe.org.uk/ `it is a charity supporting disabled children and their families by providing respite care. It is supported by local volunteers and they do an amazing job looking after disabled children. They provide a environment where young people with disabilities can enjoy themselves in a manner pleasing to them.

I would also like to nominate the meningitis research foundation www.meningitis.org/ They provide vital research into a vaccine as well as supporting families that have been affected by this deadly disease. This disease can kill in hours and babies are especially at high risk of contracting meningitis.

Vote for hmsa here. X

I would like to nominate a gastro children's charity. FABED - the ONLY UK charity supporting children with eosinophilic disease and their families. www.fabed.co.uk It is widely acknowledged that Kids with chronic gastro disease have the worst quality of life of any chronically ill child. It is unglamorous, no celebs visit the gastro wards at GOSH, which are the last to be refurbished with only ONE SHOWER and ONE TOILET for TWO 7 bed wards. On a GASTRO ward. It's insane. Less than 1% research funding goes to gastro issues and NONE to paediatric ones. My kids rely on 40+ drugs a day just so they can wee and poo, normal bodily functions most take for granted. We also have EDS co-morbid with the EGID (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and Eosinophilic Gastro-Intestinal Disease) and this causes a host of other problems too.
EGID involves the immune system, children are on multiple medications, restricted diets - some tube fed on elemental feed alone - undergo multiple surgeries and invasive tests and are in pain most days. There is more on my Blog here thereciperesource.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/why-we-need-culture-shift-on-medical.html

Today is the end of National Eosinophilic Awareness Week - just for once it would be wonderful for gastro issues to top the bill.

Vote one: ADD-vance
Vote two: Count the kicks

Reverse Retts uk

Retts is a neurological degenerative disease that effects young girls.

Reverse retts fundraises for research and raises awareness/ supports families.

A small charity that was set up by the mother of a retts girl. The research they have funded has reversed retts in mice already and may have implications for beating other conditions such as parkinsons.

Fabed gets a vote from me.

I would like to nominate a wonderful charity set up by a family after the unexpected death of their DD

A smile for Orly is based in Manchester and distributes the funds it raises to support multiple projects which benefit children under 18

It's a really worthy and inspiring cause and has benefited many, many children since it was set up

It would be really amazing if the charity could be one of the chosen ones this giving week

asmilefororly.com/who-we-support/

www.sophielancasterfoundation.com/

I would like to nominate The Sophie Lancaster Foundation for their tireless work with schools, police and communities.

The biscuit fund

I would like to nominate pregnancy Sickness Support who are a very small charity but help a lot of mums like me that suffer with severe hyperemesis in pregnancy. They are a lifeline and prevent people ending their much wanted pregnancies and provide valuable support and advice as well as seeking to educate the health profession. Fingers crossed they get chosen as they really struggle for funding.

ADD Vance have helped our family so much and I'd dearly love to nominate them

Can I nominate a small fund raising quest;

Nadia's Neonatal Vapotherm Fund

This friend of mine gave birth to twin girls at 25 weeks. A long road later they are all at home but rather than just deal with life as has been thrown at them, she wants to raise enough money to buy the neonatal unit one more Vapotherm machine to help a premature baby breath more comfortably!

I think this is a really worthy cause, driven by an extraordinary lady who, at the end of the day is really just like any other "(extra)ordinary" mother!

This is a tiny fund with a reasonable goal... but I'd love to see that goal smashed and Barnet Neonatal Unit receive a truck load of all the equipment they really need!!

Count the kicks
www.countthekicks.org.uk/

Was it clear from MNHQ's post that Scottish Women's Aid remains on the list? I thought that those switching their votes from WA may not have realised that it was the English WA that had been excluded due to being a recipient last year.

I actually inferred from Rowan's post that all of the WA organisations were out, tribpot - hence, despite WA being something very close to my heart, I switched a vote. I'll stand to be corrected on that of course because that was a very fair point that you made earlier about the four separate organisations.

There are simply so many great causes on this thread that it's going to need a judgement of Solomon to come up with five 'winners' I think.

cozie - that was my concern, but when I looked down the list in Rowan's post Scottish Women's Aid is still listed. I would like therefore for MN to clarify that it is English WA that have been excluded but that Scottish WA can still be voted for. Likewise if anyone wants to nominate Welsh or NI WA they can do - my intention is to nominate one home country per year.

There are so many worthy causes - it's great to see so many people willing to dedicate time to helping others.

how do we vote? Do we just say who we want to vote for? If so, I vote hearing dogs for deaf people. However, they have next to no chance of winning as in these things people do tend to go for the more well known charities or kids charities (seeing as its mumsnet)

I'll vote for WAY, Rape Crisis, Abortion Support Network and Count the Kicks.

Please see the following sent by a friend

womensimaging.wordpress.com/

therainbowtrust.org.uk/diagnosis-for-all/womens-section.php

Thanks

Sarah

womensimaging.wordpress.com/

You still have one vote left there, MrsHathaway.

I think we can only wait for an MNHQ view, tribpot. Maybe part of the Giving Week could be giving some more prominence to/rejuvenating the Volunteering and charitable giving board in some way. I haven't thought this through I'm afraid but that board looks to be pretty moribund and I know that there are a lot of Mumsnetters who may have little money but have some time or experience to help out the various causes that have been mentioned above. I'll mull on that one.

I know cozie but hq did say we could vote as many times as we liked and I'm waiting for clarification on the Women's Aid Scotland issue.

Also brain freeze. Next tier of preferences is wide.

chipsplay.org/

....Next tier of preferences is wide....

Ain't that the truth. If I were MNHQ, I'd be tempted to go for the 'lap of the Gods' option if there were any podium places left vacant once any front runners had been established. (Otherwise known as writing the names on pieces of paper and drawing lots from a bowl. )