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Fundraiser mash up

Mix and match challenge cards to create a winning fundraiser and pitch it to the group.

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You’ll need

  • Pens or pencils
  • Big pieces of paper
  • Printed card sets (fundraising goal, audience, theme and challenge)

Before you begin

  • Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. There's also more guidance to help you carry out your risk assessment, including examples.
  • Make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely.
  • Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help. 

Planning and setting up the activity

  • Create four sets of cards - fundraising goal cards, audience cards, theme cards and challenge cards. You can find some ideas on this page. Make enough so that each team (of 4 to 6 people) can draw one card from each set.

Fundraising goal 

  • Raise £250
  • Raise £500
  • Raise money for a local charity
  • Raise money for an international cause
  • Fund a Unit expedition 

Audience 

  • Families
  • Local businesses
  • Primary school children
  • Teenagers
  • The local community 

Theme 

  • Outdoor adventure
  • Film night
  • Sports
  • Food
  • Mystery 

Challenge 

  • No budget
  • Must happen outdoors
  • Only one hour long
  • Include a sustainable element
  • Suitable for all ages 

 

Running the activity  

  1. Gather everyone together and explain that successful fundraisers often combine creativity, planning, and teamwork. 
  2. Split everyone into teams of four to six people.
  3. Ask each team to pick one card from each category. 
  4. Teams should use their four cards to create a fundraising event that meets all the requirements. 
  5. Encourage teams to think about: 
    • How the activity will raise money. 
    • Who will take part. 
    • What resources they'll need. 
    • How they'll promote the event. 
    • How they'll make the activity inclusive and enjoyable. 
  1. Give teams 20 to 30 minutes to develop their ideas. 
  2. Ask each team to pitch their fundraiser to the rest of the group. 
  3. Allow time for questions after each presentation. 
  4. Vote on awards such as: 
    • Most creative fundraiser 
    • Most realistic fundraiser 
    • Best pitch 
    • Fundraiser you'd most like to take part in 
  1. Finish by discussing which ideas could be adapted into real fundraising activities for the group. 

Reflection

Fundraising often involves balancing lots of different ideas, challenges, and priorities. Ask everyone to think about how their team developed its fundraiser. What made an idea realistic? How did the team overcome unexpected challenges? Which fundraiser would they most like to bring to life and why? 

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

You must run your activities in line with the Safeguarding Code of Conduct for Adults (Yellow Card) and report any concerns to the UK HQ Safeguarding Team.

  • To make it easier, reduce the number of card categories or allow teams to redraw one card if they get stuck. 
  • To make it harder, introduce a surprise card halfway through the challenge that changes an important part of the fundraiser, such as the budget, venue or audience. 

Make it accessible

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.

Explorers Fundraising Activity Badge