40 Days to Go: #givingtuesday UK Final Countdown Begins With Flagship Film

 This Sunday, (15 October), Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and social change company Shape History launch the UK’s flagship film for this year’s #givingtuesday. A truly international event that’s hosted annually across 70+ countries, the film’s launch marks the 40 day countdown to the ‘day to do good stuff for charity’ and it’s not too late for individuals and organisations in the UK to sign up and get involved.

#givingtuesday is  a global day of giving, led in the UK by CAF and follows the frenzy of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, encouraging individuals and organisations to do good for the causes they support.

This year’s event on 28 November will be building on the success of 2016, which saw over 4.5million people in the UK take part. Recognised as a monumental global effort of charity, for the past two years in a row #givingtuesday has set, and then broken, the Guinness World Record for the most amount of money donated online to charity in 24 hours, racking up a whopping £35m globally.

“We’re really excited to be launching this film on Sunday, having worked closely with Shape History over the summer to produce it”, says Kim Roberts, Senior Campaigns Officer at CAF. “With only 40 days to go before #givingtuesday, this film aims to get more people thinking about how they can support the causes they care about, and help make 2017’s #givingtuesday the most successful day yet.”

Launching across social media this Sunday, the film aims to encourage younger people to get involved with #givingtuesday. Depicting the various ways we can support or ‘give’ to others, through small acts of kindness such as holding a door open, babysitting for a neighbour or walking your elderly neighbour’s dog, the film shows you don’t need lots of time or money to get involved.

“#givingtuesday is not just about finance and giving money to others. It’s also about doing good for others through tangible actions and supporting people who might need a helping hand. We want even more people to get involved this year and hopefully this piece of film shows that the smallest of actions can go a long way,” says Mike Buonaiuto, Executive Director of Shape History.

In 2016, CAF welcomed incredible support from partner organisations; the RGU Foundation at Robert Gordon University surpassed their fundraising target of £6,000, raising £9,386.15 in a day for their ‘Access bursaries’ for disadvantaged students; Pembroke College, Cambridge received nearly one hundred donations to their Jo Cox Scholarship Fund, raising £13,500 on #givingtuesday; and The Lullaby Trust took part in the Big Give and raised £70,000 on #givingtuesday to help fund research and support families dealing with SIDS.

Last year’s event welcomed over 1,600 #givingtuesday partners in the UK alone, including the likes of the FT, Sainsbury’s, ebay and BT. Public figures including Sir Richard Branson, Lorraine Kelly, Tom Daley and Ricky Gervais also got on board.

Hundreds of businesses have already pledged to take part next month. Whether you want to shop good, bake good, or even run good, with only 40 days left to register, CAF and Shape History are inviting more individuals and organisations across the UK to get involved.

You can watch the full video on our Facebook page now.