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Giving money to your school or charity has never been easier… just shop
More than 40,490 schools* in the UK are set to get a cash injection from an unusual source – the online shopper. Members of KidStart.co.uk, the online shopping club which allows members to collect cash savings for children when shopping at a wide range of online and high street retailers, can now use the website to save for a school or preferred children’s charity. At a time when UK schools are being squeezed by government cut backs with over a third of UK schools facing shrinking budgets in 2008/09**, this new initiative from KidStart offers people a chance to give to their local school while shopping online. For example, if the parents of all children in one primary school class*** used KidStart for 25 percent of their family’s fashion and travel shopping and allocated the cash rewards to the school, almost £1,500 could be raised in a year****. Unlike previous ‘vouchers for schools’ fundraising schemes which can put parents under pressure to buy certain food types in order to keep saving for their school, KidStart offers shoppers a selection of over 250 online, high street, and phone line retailers ranging from food and drink to sports and leisure, so members can be confident they will find the choice they want and still manage to give back every time. The site works by placing a percentage of every purchase into a savings account. Typically this is a child trust fund but now shoppers will have the chance to select a school or charity to be a full or partial beneficiary of every online purchase. Shoppers can place varying amounts of their cash rewards in the three different areas of savings (a child’s savings account, schools and charities). Presently the charities Genetic Interest Group (GIG), Royal London Society for the Blind (RLSB), and One Parent Families and Gingerbread are registered with the website although the number of charities will continue to expand. • Donations to GIG will help support children and families who have been diagnosed with one of the 6000 genetic illnesses recognised in the UK effecting four in every 10 babies. • RLSB will use KidStart’s support to help blind or partially sighted individuals prepare for, and lead, independent lives in the wider, sighted world. The RLSB provides education and life skills training at their nursery, school and college as well as employment support. • By donating to One Parent Families and Gingerbread KidStart members will help the charity provide vital support to lone parents and their children, tackling the problems of prejudice, poverty, isolation and social exclusion. Julian Robson, co-founder of KidStart, says: “KidStart has been established to give everyone the chance to give something back when spending money. No matter how much an individual member chooses to spend through KidStart, their commitment will go towards making a real difference to the lives of children in the UK.” David Halliday, Marketing and Fundraising Director at Royal London Society for the Blind, comments: “We are very excited to partner with KidStart. By becoming a member of KidStart, our supporters will have plenty of opportunities to fund the RLSB’s life changing work, especially with Christmas shopping fast approaching.” Joining is easy – a simple three stage process which takes no more than five minutes to set up online - after that KidStart will automatically take care of everything else: tracking transactions, collecting savings and paying it into a nominated child’s account such as a Child Trust Fund or bank/building society account. KidStart is primarily owned by employees of KidStart and is also backed by a leading venture capital firm, Delta Partners. How to Save for a School or Charity All a member has to do is ‘add a school’ or ‘add a charity’ to their list to save for. Once selected they can decide what share of their savings will go to which beneficiary. Savings will be sent to the school or charity twice a year. How to Save into a Child Savings Account Anyone can save for a child, including parents, grandparents and friends. Savings will be collected and transferred to any Child Trust Fund, bank or building society account once the value reaches £10 for individuals. *11739 nursery schools 23730 primary schools 5025 secondary schools Official Statistics. ** Anthea Lipsett: “Third of schools facing budget cuts, say Clegg”, The Guardian online, 05.06.08. *** BBC online, 09.09.08 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7606095.stm. **** Calculation based upon figures showing KidStart could offer up to £240 in savings should the average, annual, family expenditure for fashion and footwear products and holidays be spent at KidStart and KidStart Travel Club. The average primary school class is 24.5 pupils. If the family of each pupil shop for 25% of fashion and travel products through KidStart they could save £60 per family. KidStart calculations available on request. INFO BOX Launched in April 2008, www.KidStart.co.uk is a free shopping club that allows its members to collect cash savings while shopping at a wide range of retailers and service companies. KidStart’s aim is to help shoppers do that little bit extra for children in as easy a way as possible, while maintaining the necessary standards of trust and security. KidStart is not a typical loyalty programme. There are no points, no membership cards, no hassle, no catches, and no hidden charges. Just cash, for kids, for free – its simple. |