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

mean_momma

hallucenogenic_midas wrote: »

I am also thrilled to see Carers UK shortlisted and doing so well.


I might be naive, but it strikes me that caring is the one- to- one charity that can be appreciated at first hand, therefore well worth supporting. Having done a stint for a couple of charitable organizations, I am cynical about larger charities, some of which seem more like businesses.

As for the government, look at the controversy over lottery funds that are going to causes that the government is supposed to fund. The suspicion is that if charities step in, the government will opt out more and more.

belisha-beacon

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to vote on these, it is a great opportunity and I've had loads of fun looking into these charities so that I could make my vote, I have some new ones now that I would consider giving to in the future that I had not heard of before!

As a minor gripe, could I just say that it would have been helpful to have the charity's full name on the poll so that people like me who research on www.intelligentgiving.com and the Charity Commission website can easily find the information that they need? eg. CAP UK as Christians Against Poverty and Foal Farm as the Friends of Animals League. There is also the other issue which is growing in the charity sector at the moment which is people's unease if they feel that a religious charity is covering up its religious roots in order to appeal to a wider base. Christians Against Poverty (CAP UK) is one of those. Some Christians don't like the fact that a charity with Christian values is ashamed to show them by altering its name and literature, whilst some atheists and non-Christians are uncomfortable about the idea of being 'duped' into giving money for an organisation which is not making its aims transparent. So, I think that it would have been better to use its official name so that people can see what they are getting and make a properly informed decision.

Eagle-1, I wonder if part of the reason for the low showing for CAP as a debt charity is that Citizens Advice is also on there and so many people on this site will have had debt advice from them that when it comes down to a choice between the two then that's what they go for. Also, on the Intelligent Giving site it raises some concerns about the annual report having only very sketchy financial information and says that this is a bit worrying in a charity that is meant to promote financial education - I have to say that I agree.

I was also surprised to see NCH on here. It gets over £200 million from the government every year plus tens of millions in donations on top of that, they do fantastic work but I still think that it is a bit of a shame to see them on here when £20,000 could mean such a huge difference percentage-wise to most of the other charities. I'm not blaming the site, I know it is selected by a panel, but I would have hoped that they looked at annual income as part of the decision-making process because it is such a rare and amazing opportunity to have so much money to give to a charity, it would be lovely if all the ones chosen would be transformed by it.

Sarahspeech

halia wrote: »

I'd support; charity which gave one off nanny/babysitter/holiday care to a family who felt they had reached the end of their tether. Give everyone a breathing space and hopefully prevent the crises point hitting of mom (or dad) having a breakdown
I'd also support work done to look at root causes of WHY parents are under so much stress, is there any way to identify the at risk groups earlier etc etc

THis is exactly what NCH does! Or better, by providing respite services to families - their severely disabled child can have a great time out away from home, with stimulating and interesting activities, whilst the family can have a breather, time out, spend time recuperating or relaxing or having time with their other kids!
Please support them - just becauseteh government SHOULD support these areas of work, doesn't mean they currently DO, and in the meantime it's the very vulnerable parents and children who miss out.

JimmyTheWig

worldtraveller wrote: »

Well said southernbelle. As a proposer for the Help for Heroes charity I was somewhat saddened to see that some posters in the thread have brought politics into the discussion. That is their right of course, which I have absolutely no problem with, but nevertheless it does sadden me, particularly when Help for Heroes make it very clear that the charity is non-political and is not trying to say anything about the rights and wrongs of current military campaigns, it is simply trying to raise awareness and funds for those men and women who don’t make it home unscathed and gives people the chance to show that they care, appreciate and support all our Servicemen and women.

I hope that it receives the support that I believe that it deserves and many thanks to all those that have, and those others that hopefully will, vote for it. :beer:

Something I like about this site is that the contributors often look for various ways to help.
For example - "I'm spending too much money on petrol". One answer is to find a cheaper petrol station. But actually by changing your driving habits you can save even more money. That's not to say that you shouldn't find a cheaper petrol station but you need to concentrate on what makes the biggest difference.
Another example - "I am paying too much interest on my debt". One answer is to transfer your credit card balances to a 0% deal. But at the same time you need to do a budget to ensure you don't slip further into debt or you don't end up in the same situation again.

And I think we can draw parallels here.
Yes, people who have served in the forces are suffering. Yes they should be helped through that suffering.
But at the same time, and to a greater extent, I think we need to look at why these people are suffering.

There is little point trying to patch up a problem without trying to stop the cause of the problem.

louise3965

Help for Heroes is very new and I would like to know how many heroes they have actually helped, as there is no information about this in Guidestar. This worries me slightly as I know there are existing charities like SSAFA and the Royal British Legion who are helping thousands each year, and have been doing so for years and years.

I struggles with the rest, but in the end chose BLISS because I have personal experience of premature birth. Good Luck BLISS

Arenasarenas

When I consider supporting a charity I always ask myself is this something the government should be responsible for? If I support this charity am I actually letting the government off the hook? We are a rich country and the government can easily afford to help those in need but it often chooses not to because it knows you will! So I support those charities that I feel tax payers shouldn't really be subsidising such as animal charities - so the foal farm gets my vote!

Grumpy_Liz

All of these charities are of course worthy of funding. Agree with other posts that they should be funded by the Government. However, please consider the 'Alzheimer's Society' a very 'unloved' charity until someone in your family suffers. Looking at the stats,the disease will grow and grow and is so 'underfunded' it is disgraceful. If more was done for 'prevention' it would reduce the 'Carer's burden' I know I have been one and it does take 'It's toll'. Only way to avoid it - don't grow old!!

Nev.

Being an ex serviceman I suppose I would.

The charities listed are all worthy of a vote except Shelter, Brown already gives £ billions away of tax payers money overseas so this one I definately wouldn't vote for.

As far as I'm concerned we have enough problems in this country without giving our money away to overseas projects. Charity begins at home IMO

Nev

southernbelle

louise3965 wrote: »

Help for Heroes is very new and I would like to know how many heroes they have actually helped, as there is no information about this in Guidestar. This worries me slightly as I know there are existing charities like SSAFA and the Royal British Legion who are helping thousands each year, and have been doing so for years and years.

I struggles with the rest, but in the end chose BLISS because I have personal experience of premature birth. Good Luck BLISS

Hi. Help for Heroes are aiming to specifically pay for facilities to help wounded servicemen. They recently broke the £6 million barrier, which they aimed for to build a new swimming pool and gym (I think) at Headley Court which is the rehab centre. I've been to Headley with my own injury and those men and women there really make you think.

louise3965

southernbelle wrote: »

Hi. Help for Heroes are aiming to specifically pay for facilities to help wounded servicemen. They recently broke the £6 million barrier, which they aimed for to build a new swimming pool and gym (I think) at Headley Court which is the rehab centre. I've been to Headley with my own injury and those men and women there really make you think.

Hi, I know about that, and well done to them, its been a brilliant campaign! However my worries with fundraising for projects like this, then continuing to fundraise afterwards is that newer charities often then duplicate the work of other charities who have been helping people in their field for years, as the Charity Commission *forces* them to spend their donations, and they run out of things to spend them on!

Threads like this are brilliant, aren't they? We are all canvassing for our favourites!

VOTE BLISS VOTE BLISS VOTE BLISS :j