'Pick this site’s charities for the next year.' Poll results/discussion

Former_MSE_Lawrence

Poll between 15-22 July 2008.

Pick this site’s official charities for the next year.

Here’s the shortlist for the site’s charities, those that are selected could get up to £20,000 each, so please vote carefully.

How they were picked…

Any site user could nominate and over 600 charities were suggested. The tough shortlisting job went to five regular site users. Four of the charities below will join the automatic pick Re-cycle. The vote closed at 1pm Tues 22 July. This money is alongside the sites own charity the MSE charity, for more info see the MSE Charitable Fund.

Please vote for your top pick of the most relevant and effective charities from the following.

BLISS… for babies born too soon, too small, too sick.
Site: Bliss - 8% (3060 votes)

CAP UK... personal help for those needing debt counselling.
Site: Capuk - 12% (4146 votes)

Carers UK… caring for carers, practically, emotionally and financially.
Site: Carers UK - 8% (3024 votes)

Citizens Advice... providing free information and advice where it’s needed.
Site: Citizens Advice - 5% (1804 votes)

Foal Farm… restoring sick and unwanted animals to health.
Site: Foal Farm - 3% (1217 votes)

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People… transforming lives.
Site: Hearing Dogs for Deaf People - 3% (1254 votes)

Help for Heroes… practical, direct support to our armed forces’ wounded.
Site: Help For Heroes - 22% (7770 votes)

iT4 Communities… bringing charities and IT support volunteers together.
Site: it4communities - 2% (668 votes)

NCH... helping vulnerable children and young people achieve their potential.
Site: NCH - 6% (2271 votes)

Samaritans… providing confidential emotional support to the UK.
Site: Samaritans - 11% (3898 votes)

Shelterbox… giving emergency aid worldwide.
Site: Shelterbox - 18% (6511 votes)

St Giles Trust… helping reduce crime and social exclusion.
Site: St Giles Trust - 1% (422 votes)

This vote has now closed, but you can still click 'post reply' to discuss below. Thanks

angel

I was thrilled to see Foal Farm there as I love to support small charities as well as the big ones. They do great work especially as there is a desperate need for this kind of work in South London and the surrounding areas.

I hope that they do well!

gonzolagonda

Obviously the choice of charity to vote for is a personal decision, but I suggest voters bear in mind that the current leader in the poll Help For Heroes, whilst undoubtedly deserving, rather takes the onus off the perpetrators and causes of those members of the forces injured in conflict. Whether or not you support UK foreign policy, any consequences of wars entered into by our government should be borne by our government, including proper care, treatment and compensation for those injured. It really shouldn't be dependent on charitable donation. In every conflict in history there are more civilians that get killed than soldiers. Soldiers go into their role in the full knowledge of the possible outcome, whereas civilians caught up in conflict have no such choice. I have voted for one of the childrens' charities, NCH, as children can find themselves in difficult circumstances through no fault of their own.

As I have said, this is a personal choice, and I don't doubt there will be some robust responses to this post(!) However, if you share my view you might be interested to read more about the subject of the prevention of conflict here http://www.ppu.org.uk/

Inverness

The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) help everyone with everything. Their twin aim is to influence social policy and bring about "consumer revenge" as well as many other issues such as debt, housing, welfare benefits, employment issues, family matters, immigration etc. For these reasons I think CAB deserve the money and the credit. Nothing could be more appropriate for this website to support.

Not everyone knows the Citizens Advice Bureau are a charity and that the advisers are well trained and well supervised volunteers. Likewise, may assume they get governmental or council funding but they are independant and receive only nominal support from most councils despite helping the council's customers all the time for free.

It's time this invaluable organisation received some proper recognition and had more money to carry out this invaluable service. For the record, I became a volunteer last April and am so impressed by the peoploe that work there and disgusted at the lack of finance they are given.

columbini1

I notice that Samaritans is not doing too well in the poll.This is a charity that finds it very difficult to raise funds,as,by its very nature,it has to remain anonymous to the general public.Therefore it is impossible to do fund-raising events as volunteers have to protect their identity.
If you have ever needed a sympathetic ear in times of great distress,you will appreciate what a great job they do.Nobody knows how many lives they have saved.
One day you may need them too.Please add to their vote!
Barbara.

chou_123

I voted Carers UK, and then noticed it was doing rather well in the polls. I have a friend who works as a carer for mentally handicapped people and the work is very stressful and hard, for not much pay. So it will be nice to see some support for the carers themselves.

raisin_2

I do not envy the task that was faced by the site users who picked the charities, I found it difficult to choose one to vote for and looked at several links before deciding. I'd just like to point out that the St Giles Trust only supports people in the South and East of England.....

W_s_n

Hi everyone, i've voted for NCH

SeasideSam

In terms of real need would have hoped to see more Third World charities listed. Charity begins at home will no doubt be pleaded, but is basically a selfish creed.
Would be useful to know what specific criteria are used as a selection basis. Perhaps more discussion is needed on such issues-for example new cancer drugs benefiting a minority who get much publicity and we feel for, compared to a similar spend benefiting many suffering from hip problems or diabetes for example.

gonzolagonda

I agree with Seaside Sam, I would have liked to have voted for War On Want for example, who do good works all round the world with an ethical slant.

Bargainetta

I voted for Help for Heroes because I expected the animal charities to be the front runners and the statistics for the homeless in the U.K. are shocking - something like a third or a half of the people on the streets are ex-forces some quite unable to cope with what they have seen. They may have chosen to join up but then look at the slick advertising and how vunerable the young are to that sort of thing. Mental illness is so often overlooked.