HOW YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS CAN HELP

Businesses and their employees can support our work in a diverse and exciting range of ways. Increasingly, local businesses are partnering with Off The Fence to help us achieve our financial goals.

Become a member of our Business Supporters Scheme

See the news items below to find out how local businesses are already supporting us.

Click here for more information and to apply

Top tips for employees to get involved:

Nominate Off The Fence to be your company's ‘Charity of the Year’ and ask your colleagues to vote for us • Set fundraising targets for your employees to work towards and then celebrate when they’ve been achieved • Establish a fundraising team • Organise charity events that are fun and lively so that people are eager to participate • Celebrate your charitable work – have an awards ceremony or a special dinner to recognise the best fundraising departments • Get senior members of staff to do something high profile and looking silly eg. wearing fancy dress on a fun-run • Organise friendly rivalries between your competitors – either in terms of amounts raised or actual events such as football matches or sports days • Publicise your charity work internally in newsletters, on the intranet, on the website and in company meetings • Invite local and trade media to cover your higher profile events • Make charity work more of a partnership between the company and your employees by matching any donations they make - Lloyds TSB have kindly donated a significant amount of money this way, when they match-funded some of their employees in the sponsored Half-Marathon

Corporate Donations

Businesses can give to charities in an easy and cost effective way and there are also tax benefits:

Click here for more information from HM Treasury

Support our Events

Throughout the year Off The Fence organises and participates in sponsored events like our Swim Gala or the Brighton Half-Marathon. Next year we are hoping to launch an overseas challenge. You could enter a team with your colleagues or challenge another department?

Gifts In Kind

If your company has excess stock or items that could be useful to us. Maybe you're refurbishing your office and have some spare equipment that we could make good use of.

Collection Boxes

If you own or work in a shop, pub, cafe, etc. in Brighton & Hove, you can raise money for the charity by displaying one of our collection boxes.

Off The Fence can:provide you with the box; allocate you a volunteer to regularly collect your box and provide you with a new one; and, count the money and send you a receipt and certificate, telling you how much you have raised.

Please contact james.webb@offthefence.org.uk for more information on any of the above or if you have an idea that you'd like to talk about.

New designs for the 'Women at Risk' base

Overton-Hart Chartered Building Surveyors are kindly drawing up plans free-of-charge for our new Women at Risk advice centre.

The refurbished base will be a welcoming and comfortable place for vulnerable women in Brighton and Hove to meet our staff and volunteers.

Many thanks to Bob Overton-Hart, Director, (pictured on the right) and his team for their hard work and commitment to supporting Off The Fence.

The Downland Housing Association has just awarded Off The Fence a £500 grant towards the printing of our next newsletter.

An entire year's coffee has been supplied by Richard Yalden on behalf of his company 'Roasted'.

Off The Fence Founder Paul Young says, 'We are really grateful to Richard for his support. It makes such a difference when we go out onto the streets in the evening and can engage those we meet with a cup of coffee. It's tough living rough and especially on a freezing winter's night a hot cup of coffee is always appreciated.'

Richard launched his business at the beginning of this year and is supplying coffee making equipment to organisations all over Sussex. Why not take a look at the web site Roasted.

The Robin Hood, a Brighton pub, has raised a wonderful £1,000 for Off The Fence.

This pub is not like other pubs. Set up in 2004, by Martin Webb - a local entrepreneur and star of Channel 4's 'Risking it All' - this pub gives all its annual profits to good causes in Brighton and Hove.

Manager, Anna Henderson, and Assistant Manager, Jenny Sanderson (pictured left) organised a special charity night benefiting three local charities including Off The Fence. So, next time you go out for a drink or meal, do visit the Robin Hood and help raise money for charity (3 Norfolk Place, Brighton, BN1 2PF).

Our 2006-7 Impact Report was kindly sponsored by Domus Tiles.

It was a significant gift that has helped keep our supporters up-to-date with all the latest news. Maybe your company could sponsor one of our regular newsletters and gain from the significant publicity?