-
Thank you BVH
A huge heartfelt thank you to Bournville Harriers (BVH) running club who had their Christmas party on Friday. Through their raffle they kindly raised £212 for us and another fabulous local charity, St. Mary’s Hospice. £106 will buy 26 public transport tickets so that any child or adult who needs to travel to us for an appointment, but can’t afford to, can be given a day travel ticket. This means they never have to miss out on receiving our support. That is truly fabulous, thank you!
As if this generosity wasn’t enough they also donated some festive party headbands and glasses so we can donate them to some of the children and families we support. This is just a very small selection of them! We hope that these will bring a little bit of festive fun and laughter at what can be a difficult time for many.
Thanks again BVH for your continued kindness and generosity. We really appreciate your efforts from all the different ways you’ve fundraised for us, including every single one of your runners who have run sponsored runs for us, and every member who has donated to these runs too. It means the world to us to have your support. Happy Christmas all.
-
This May is Will Month
RSVP are delighted to announce that we are organising a Will Month in May in conjunction with local will writing firm BensonWilliams.
This will firstly help our supporters to purchase a very necessary product, and secondly it will help us to raise much needed funds to help us to continue providing our services for survivors.
Here’s how it works. One of BensonWilliams representatives will arrange to meet with you. On completion they will charge their standard fee, currently £120 for single Wills and £160 for mirrored Wills, but 50% of that fee will then be donated back to RSVP on your behalf by BensonWilliams.
Jim at BensonWilliams:
There are many reasons why it may be advisable for you to make your Will. The single biggest for any parent of a child below eighteen is protection of that child. The law is silent on the subject of guardianship of a minor, and children can very easily end up in care whilst custody decisions are being made. Also children below eighteen can’t inherit money as minors and it has to go into a trust for them. Making a Will means you control who becomes guardian for your children, and you decide who controls their money until they are eighteen.
There are of course many other reasons why people make Wills. For example you may be worried about an ex spouse or partner claiming on your estate, you may be in a second marriage, you may live with a partner but not be married. All of these circumstances create potentially problematic issues, but whatever your circumstances BensonWilliams will tailor things to your precise needs.
To take advantage of this scheme please forward your details to Sarah Lafford at RSVP. She will then forward your details to BensonWilliams so that they can contact you to arrange your appointment.
-
In at the deep end!
Six brave fundraisers are taking on a massive challenge for RSVP. On 20th October, they’ll be swimming with sharks, without a cage!
They all have fundraising pages online and we’re hoping they’ll smash their fundraising targets.
Thanks to all the fundraisers (and those supporting them), your support makes a big difference.
-
5 Ultra runs in 4 months!
We’re so grateful to Nicola for her incredible fundraising efforts. She is completing 5 different ‘ultra runs’ in just 4 months. Her final, and biggest, challenge takes place this week at the Thames Ultra – a whopping 184 miles!
Nicola has already smashed her target, and if you want to donate to her fundraising page and show your support, just go to LocalGiving.
-
Wish granted!
Thank you to the generous folk who have granted our wish and bought essential children’s therapeutic resources from our Amazon wish list. They’ve gone straight into Vicky’s Room – our children’s and family room.
There’s lots of other items on the wish list, including books, feelings flash cards and admin items. It’s a really simple and direct way to support us in our 40th year. You can browse the wish list here.
-
The Peak District Challenge
If you want to take on a new challenge AND raise money for RSVP in our 40th year, why not take on the Peak District Challenge?
21-22 September, you would face a raise against time to complete a picturesque running/trekking challenge in the beautiful Peak District. There are 5 levels of difficulty you can choose from, read about them here.
All you need to do is register at www.peak-district-challenge.com and select RSVP as your chosen charity to receive sponsorship money. And then it’s time to get your friends and family involved by securing donations. We can help promote your challenge on social media, and will be rooting for you the whole way!
-
MEGA fundraising challenge – 28 countries in 1 year!
Enormous thanks to Steve who has set himself a huge fundraising (and physical!) challenge. He is running in all 28 EU member states before Britain exits the EU in March 2019.
He’s aiming to raise £10,000 that will be donated to RSVP and Changing Faces, a charity offering support and advice for people living with a condition that affects their physical appearance.
Steve says:
I’m going to attempt to run in all 28 countries of the European Union before Britain leaves at 11pm on 29 March 2019. In each country I’ll aim to run with local running groups and clubs, taking part in organised races when I can. Wherever I go, I’ll tell people about this crazy challenge, the reasons why it’s important to me and about the work of RSVP and Changing Faces. Please help me support these two fantastic charities.
Steve’s fundraiser page is live at https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/runningmerunningeu
All money donated to RSVP will go towards supporting survivors of sexual violence and abuse.
-
Training For London
Hi, I’m Kate and I wanted to give you an update about my training for the London Marathon on Sunday 22nd April which I’m running for RSVP. It will be my first ever marathon and I’m delighted and proud to be running for this amazing charity.
I am now well into my training with less than a month to go! I have trained up to 22 miles, my longest run ever, and it’s fair to say that I am so tired! I have trained in the sun, the rain and the snow and who knows what the next few weeks will bring. Along with a long run I am also running another 3 times a week, doing spin and power plates and some yoga. I don’t know where I’m finding the time, it’s very time consuming but it’s well worth it.
This charity, their services and this cause is important to so many people and is undoubtedly the thing that keeps me motivated. I volunteered for this fantastic and important cause for over 10 years on the helpline, it is a charity that’s very special to me. RSVP enables survivors to have support and a safe space to explore their thoughts and feelings through the helpline, coffee mornings, counselling, groups and advocacy for children and adults of all genders.
I applied for a ballot place for the marathon 8 times and finally got a place this year. I always wanted to do this as a personal challenge and also to raise money for this special charity, I am not a natural runner and so this really is a challenge! Through my Online and offline fundraising I’ve already raised over £800 and I am overwhelmed and humbled by the support my friends and family have shown. If you’d like to support me or check what total I’m up to click through to my page here.
RSVP is 40 this year (they set up in 1978) so it’s perfect that I can do this during this year and play my part in supporting this special local cause. I am hoping to keep injury free in the final lead up to the marathon and I really can’t wait for the day!
Kate
If like Kate you’d like to support RSVP and get involved in our special year there are all kinds of ways you can do this. Some ideas will raise funds for us without you spending anything extra! Click here for ideas. Thank you.
-
Good news!
We are delighted to receive news that Garfield Weston Foundation will support RSVP through 2018/19. They will contribute to the costs of delivering counselling to sexual violence survivors.
By funding us for core costs, they are strengthening our foundations for the year, securing funding for counselling staff and contributing to overhead costs. Counselling is our busiest service; from 1st January we have received 393 new requests for counselling from adults and children who have experienced sexual abuse. The need for specialist, trauma-informed support is great, and continues to grow.
Thank you so much to the foundation, from the whole RSVP team, for recognising the importance of our workin our 40th year and boldly showing your support for survivors.
-
£40 for 40 years in 40 days
An amazing fundraiser Jude Glynn is selflessly running the London Marathon this year on Sunday 22nd April for RSVP.
We give our heartfelt thanks to Jude for devoting her time and energy to raise money for RSVP. Jude’s motivation for fundraising is that back in the summer of 2014 something terrible happened to someone she loved very much and RSVP helped them. We provided counselling and support for the survivor through the court case and helped rebuild their self-esteem.
As an organisation, we at RSVP, will be celebrating our 40th anniversary. That’s forty years helping survivors of sexual violence with respect, empathy and sensitivity. As a part of our celebrations we welcome any kind of fundraising to help us continue to provide support for another 40 years. We rely on fundraising to operate and sadly there is a waiting list of people needing support. With support from amazing people like Jude we aim to reduce the time that people are waiting for counselling and furthermore we will provide more support in outreach locations around Birmingham and Solihull, so our services are more accessible and inclusive.
Get Involved!!
Could you spare a couple of quid? The response has already been incredible but something small but amazing today will still make a difference.Here’s Jude’s fundraising page https://localgiving.org/fundraising/jude-londonmarathon-2018/
Want to raise funds your own way? Fundraising needn’t be as exhausting as a marathon run! Bake sales, dress down days at work and clothes swaps are just some ways that you can fundraise for survivors.