Helping to make the world a better place by supporting your favourite charity doesn't always mean spending lots of money. Whilst charities always welcome donations of cash, there are still loads of ways you can help when on a tight budget - and it's appreciated just as much!

We've put together 10 great ways you can support Haven without spending any money:
 

1.  Raise awareness on social media

Helping us to get our message across on social media is so important! Liking and following our Facebook and Twitter accounts, or liking, reposting, commenting and sharing individual posts costs nothing, but can really help us to reach more people with valuable information and support. Your share could mean we get new followers, donations and supporters.
 

2.  Create a fundraiser

Instead of donating your own money, you could set up a charity fundraiser such as Nicole-Rae's Heavenly 'Haven' Treats last year. There are tons of other ideas such as coffee mornings, doing a sporty challenge, having a sponsored silence or running an event. This page has a few more!
 

3.  Volunteer your time

By volunteering your time, you can help make a positive change to the families we support. In return, we give training and support to help our volunteers develop their skills and experience. If you want to do this type of work for your career, it's a great way to get practical experience. We advertise for new volunteers periodically on social media and the VAS website.
 

4.  Do your Amazon shopping via AmazonSmile

If you shop on Amazon, take a look at the AmazonSmile platform which has the same products, prices and shopping features as the normal website but donates 0.5% of your eligible purchases to a charitable organisation of your choice. Click this link to make it easy for you to find Haven on AmazonSmile.
 

5.  Donate your skills

Charity Trustees are legally accountable for the operation of the charity, for its property, finances, the employment of any staff and the wellbeing of volunteers and members of the public. If you have skills and experience in management, strategy, governance, human resources, and decision making, you can make a huge difference to the way a charity runs.
 

6.  Ask friends and relatives for gift donations

If friends or relatives ask for birthday / Christmas gift ideas, you could ask them to donate to charity instead. Anna Chester set up a birthday fundraiser last year and raised a whopping £410 for Haven.
 

7.  Donate your credit card rewards

Some credit cards give an annual cash back reward, so you could take the amount received and donate it to charity. A gift to Haven of just £10 will buy a 1-1 mentor session for a child or young person who needs extra support.
 

8.  Get knitting

We give knitted worry dolls or soft balls to the children we're working with so, periodically, we need the support of knitters in the community to donate knitted products. More information here.
 

9.  Donate to our winter appeal

Our winter appeal aims to give all the families we work with a special treat over the festive period via shoebox donations. Some people prefer to donate cash but, if you have any new and unwanted gifts, you could donate those instead. We'll be launching our 2021 appeal in a couple of months so keep an eye on our social media for more information.
 

10.  Nominate Haven as your workplace charity

Many businesses ask their employees to give charity nominations for them to support over a year. Nominating Haven as your workplace charity could help us to raise more awareness of the support we provide and increase the amount of donations received.
 

We welcome any good deeds, whether it's cash donations or giving your time in other ways, and love to share stories of how the local community support Haven so make sure you let us know and tag us in your social media posts! 

If you are able to afford a cash donation, just £5 will pay for public transport for a child or young person to access a group programme. Group support programmes help young people to feel less alone with their feelings, to connect with others, to express their emotions in safe, healthy ways, and to feel stronger and more settled in themselves.

Thank you!