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Update – After 21 grueling days, Claire completed her hand-cycle on Monday 14th May. We went along to London’s South Bank to join the crowds and cheer her across the finish line.

Take a look at our photos from the day

Congratulations Claire!

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Last year, despite being paralysed from the chest down, Claire Lomas completed the London marathon in a bionic suit and raised more than £220,000 for Spinal Research, a spinal cord repair charity.

And after winning the JustTextGiving by Vodafone Mobile Fundraiser of the Year Award, you’d understand if Claire wanted to take a well-deserved break from grueling physical challenges.

The ride of a lifetime

But Claire has now set herself an equally daring task – The ride of a lifetime. She’s cycling the equivalent of a marathon a day for three weeks on a specially made hand-bike.

Claire had this to say about her new challenge:

‘As soon as I finished the marathon last year I knew I wanted to keep fundraising. I’m looking forward to meeting as many people as I can on the way to raise money, awareness and offer inspiration for them to go and fundraise themselves. Together we can help find a cure for paralysis’.

As well as fundraising, Claire will use the challenge to increase awareness of spinal injuries by cycling to schools, universities and workplaces in over a dozen different counties to give educational and motivational talks.

If you want to show your support for Claire’s amazing 21-day challenge, you can donate by visiting her fundraising page or texting LEGS60 £3 to 70070. All the money raised will go to Spinal Research.

Good luck Claire!

You can help to end slavery in the UK, support the Zoe Challenge

Join actor Tom Lister, Hope for Justice CEO Ben Cooley and a team of cyclists on their epic journey from Riga, Latvia to Southampton, UK.

We are doing this cycle ride because of Zoe. Zoe was trafficked from Latvia into the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation, where she was repeatedly raped for profit.  After months of investigations, Hope for Justice found and rescued Zoe, and she is now living in freedom.

Join Tom, Ben and the Team – apply for your place!

Cycle one of the stages here in the UK:

29th May 2013: Hull to Leeds (62 miles)

30th May 2013: Leeds to Leicester (110 miles)

31st May 2013:  Leicester to London (125 miles)

1st June 2013:     London to Southampton (95 miles)

The deadline for registering for a place is April 30th.

Don’t miss out, apply for your place today

About Hope for Justice

Hope for Justice exists to rescue victims of human trafficking here in the UK. We believe that freedom is worth the fight and that justice is non-negotiable. We are committed to ending slavery in this nation.

We support victims in the pursuit of legal action against their traffickers and our legal team advocate on their behalf in critical situations. Our Aftercare Coordinator works alongside victims and signposts them to relevant organisations that provide the rehabilitation they so desperately need.

Create your fundraising page for Hope for Justice

All money raised through the Zoe Challenge will be used to help Hope for Justice reach and rescue more hidden victims of human trafficking here in the UK.

Please take a look at our website for further information: www.hopeforjustice.org.uk

This year’s JustGiving Awards gave us the chance to meet some of the best fundraisers in the business – our winners! We asked them to share some wisdom to help other fundraisers gain similar success. Here’s what they had to say.

Plan ahead, like Company of the Year Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners (NLP)

NLP recommends starting your fundraising as early as possible, if you have a deadline. And if you’re fundraising as a company, try brainstorming with colleagues to come up with fundraising ideas. “Our most innovative and creative ideas came from our staff,” they say. Forward thinking paid off for NLP – they raised over £60,000 for a variety of charities chosen by their employees.

Use the code you must, like JustTextGiving by Vodafone Mobile Fundraiser of the Year Claire Lomas

“If you’re doing a fundraising challenge, make sure your JustTextGiving by Vodafone code is visible on your clothing,” says Claire. “It is such a quick and easy way to donate, and 100% goes to the charity.” Claire’s about to start a brand new challenge cycling from London to Paris, and she’s added her text code to her bike.

Make it a team effort, like Endurance Fundraiser of the Year Stuart Block

Stuart says it’s a good idea to do something which involves other people to get them fundraising with you. He used a tandem bike to ensure friends and family could join him for parts of his epic cycle from Johannesburg to London.

Reward your supporters, like Creative Fundraiser of the year Juliana Matthews

Juliana believes in creating something tangible to encourage people to give. She says, “Many people who buy my Happy Bags aren’t interested in where the money is going. What they want is the actual happy bag itself and at £2, everyone can afford them. So they appeal to teenage girls.”

Juliana’s supporters are sent a Happy Bag that contains a marble (for when you lose all of yours), a piece of string (for when you can no longer hold it together), an eraser (so you can rub out your mistakes and start your day again), a teddy bear (so you can always have a hug), a coin (so you will never be broke), a heart (so you always know someone loves you) and a butterfly (because life is beautiful yet fragile). If you decide to give something away in exchange for a donation, do remind your donors that they can’t tick the GiftAid box!

Get the media involved, like Outstanding Commitment to Fundraising award winner Alice Halstead

Alice says it pays to tell the press what you’re doing. “Make sure your fundraising story is out in the public and people who are touched by your story or the charity you have chosen are more likely to donate.” Alice’s story is truly inspirational – after being diagnosed with a unique form of diabetes, her wish to see the Lion King was granted by Rays of Sunshine Children’s Charity. This was the catalyst for her to start fundraising for the organisation, which grants wishes for seriously ill children. So far, her efforts have raised £50,000 for the cause.

Put the ‘fun’ in fundraising, like Cancer Research UK’s Dryathlon, Best Use of Technology award winner

This year’s Best Use of Technology award went to Dryathlon™, a successful fundraising campaign that challenged social drinkers to give up alcohol for January, to raise money for Cancer Research UK. “We used virtual rewards in the form of badges and trophies to encourage fundraisers,” says Ed Cervantes-Watson, from Cancer Research UK. If you’re not quite this tech savvy, try organising a sweepstake around your event or ask your supporters to guess the number of sweets in a jar in exchange for a donation.

Be passionate, like Charity of the Year Nowzad

Nowzad is the brainchild of ex-marine Pen Farthing, who was horrified by the condition and treatment of the local animals upon his arrival in Afghanistan in 2006.  Today, Pen and his team operate the first and only officially recognized animal shelter in Afghanistan. Pen says it’s key to share your passion for your cause with your supporters. He says, “Make sure your target donors know WHY you are willing to run, walk, bake, climb, eat, talk or trek for the charity of your choice – your donors will be more willing to support your noble efforts if they can connect with your reason for making a difference. Supporters NEED to know why they should feel inclined to donate!’ Nowzad certainly know how to do that – they inspired thousands of you to vote for them to be this year’s winner.

Always keep it personal, like Special Recognition Award winner Barbara Walmsley

Barbara has been fundraising for Oxfam GB for 27 years, raising hundreds of thousands of pounds in the process. She says, “Without a doubt my top tip would be to make sure you contact people personally. There is no substitute for topping and tailing your appeal letter or e-mail, visiting your sponsors if you possibly can, sending a thank you acknowledgement and keeping a careful record of donors details for next year if it is an ongoing thing.”

Marcelo and Ashley are delighted to announce that their chapter, Globarity: The impact of social media on global solidarity for the book, Global Fundraising, edited by Bernard Ross and Penelope Cagney is due to be published next month and is now available to pre-order on Amazon.

Global Fundraising is a practical guide to the challenges and successes of global fundraising, written by a team of international professionals. The book looks at how the world of fundraising is changing rapidly due to a number of factors including the continuing growth of great wealth, non profit innovation, the growth of indigenous NGOs, increased professionalism in fundraising and the value and role of new and social technologies.

Our chapter explores the realm of social media as it relates to the social sector, focusing on topics such as crowdfunding and crowdsourcing, real-time communication, global connectivity, location based activism and even fun!

We’d love to hear your opinions about it so don’t hesitate to get in touch with your thoughts…