The NHS Big Tea Frequently Asked Questions
About the NHS Big Tea
When should I host my NHS Big Tea?
We’re encouraging the nation to raise a brew on 5 July, the NHS 75th birthday, but if that date doesn’t work for you, you can do it any day that week. Morning, afternoon or evening, week day or evening – it’s up to you.
Where should I host my NHS Big Tea?
Where you host your tea party is up to you, you could do a small intimate affair at home or get your colleagues involved and host one at work, or perhaps you want to get the whole community involved and look at hosting in your local town hall or community centre or perhaps your local church or mosque, the possibilities are endless!
How do I register?
Click here to register for the NHS Big Tea. You will receive a welcome pack in the post, jam-packed with advice and materials to help you host a fundraising tea party. You can also download the pack along with a few other helpful tools here. You will also get your own JustGiving page when you register, so that you can collect donations online. Hosting is as easy as ONE, TWO, TEA!
How do I host an NHS Big Tea?
First you’ll need to register, when you do this a JustGiving page will be created for you, and you’ll receive a welcome pack in the post (as well as a digital version) with lots of information, advice and tools to help you.
Choose when and where you host your tea party, invite your invi-teas, stock up on tea party treats and plan some games to help you put even more pounds in your pot. Then enjoy time with your friends, colleagues, family or local community and turn your tea and cake into cash this July.
When you register to host, you will be sent a unique QR code in your welcome pack which will link directly to your JustGiving page. This QR code will be on your welcome letter and on some stickers that you can stick around at your tea party, so your guests can scan and donate securely to your JustGiving page, without having to exchange physical cash. If your guests do want to donate in cash, you can just collect the money and pay it into your JustGiving page yourself.
It's as easy as that! And every penny your raise will make a big difference to our amazing NHS.
How do I promote my NHS Big Tea?
You can download posters and promotional materials to put up at your work, in shops, your community or anywhere else from our resources section.
When will my NHS Big Tea fundraising pack arrive?
When you register to host an NHS Big Tea, you can access downloadable materials straight away in our Resources section and you will be sent a welcome pack in the post. It will take around 7 – 10 days after you register for your welcome pack to arrive in the post, so make sure you register in time.
If your postal pack has not arrived after 10 days, please contact us hello@anhsc.org.uk or the NHS Charity you are fundraising for.
I registered to host an NHS Big Tea but can no longer take part – how do I cancel?
If you wish to cancel your registration, please email hello@anhsc.org.uk (or contact the NHS Charity you chose to fundraise for when you registered to host) to let us know and include the address you registered with. If you can’t take part, why not make a donation to your JustGiving page instead?
How do I make a complaint?
If you would like to make a complaint about the NHS Big Tea, please email us on hello@anhsc.org.uk
We will aim to respond to you within 5 working days.
Click here for our full complaints process and procedure.
Fundraising
Can I fundraise for my local NHS Charity?
Yes, when you register, you can choose to fundraise for NHS Charities Together or you can select a local NHS charity to support.
How do I donate or pay in my fundraising?
The quickest, easiest way to collect funds is via your NHS Big Tea JustGiving page, which will be created when you register.
You will receive an email with a unique link to your NHS Big Tea JustGiving page. You will also receive a QR code which takes you to your fundraising page in your postal welcome pack or you can search for your NHS Big Tea JustGiving page on their website.
If you have collected cash at your NHS Big Tea event, you can simply pay the money into your bank account and add the equivalent amount to your JustGiving page.
If you have any further questions about your fundraising, please email hello@anhsc.org.uk or contact the NHS Charity you chose to fundraise for when you registered to host an NHS Big Tea event.
Where does my fundraising go?
Money raised for NHS Big Tea will go where the need is greatest, and provide the extra support that staff, patients, and volunteers need to help the NHS go further, so that everyone can have better healthcare.
Some of the projects we fund support NHS staff, the beating heart of our health service who often put their patients need before their own. The last few years have been particularly traumatic, with many staff feeling burnt-out, anxious and exhausted.
With your support, we can ensure staff have somewhere to rest during busy shifts, that those struggling with their mental health can access counselling support, and that staff can better support one another through access to peer-to-peer training.
How can my guests donate?
Your guests can either make a credit/debit card donation direct to your NHS Big Tea JustGiving page, or they can make a cash or cheque donation at your event. We would really encourage you to ask your donors to use the unique QR code in your fundraising pack to donate direct to your JustGiving page, this way you don’t have any work to do in getting the money to us. All the money donated onto your JustGiving page will come directly to us.
What is a QR code?
You have a QR code on your JustGiving fundraising page.
We want to make donating as accessible and easy as possible so we’re including QR stickers in your fundraising pack. A QR code is just like a bar code. Guests can scan your unique code, using their phone camera which will take them to your JustGiving page and will allow them to donate without cash.
What about Gift Aid?
If people chose to Gift Aid their donation, it means we can claim 25p for every £1 without costing them another penny!
Only personal donations are eligible for Gift Aid. When people donate to your JustGiving page, they can Gift Aid their donation with a few taps if they're a UK taxpayer.
If you’re paying in a collection to your JustGiving page, if you’ve made a purchase or if you’ve had a chance to win a prize, this amount is not eligible for Gift Aid.
Please note that Gift Aid does not apply to non-UK taxpayers, Isle of Man and Channel Island residents.
Being the Host with the Most!
What do I need to know about food Safety?
Food safety is vitally important. Please take great care when handling food and work to basic rules for safe preparation, storage, display and cooking.
The Food Standards Agency provides guidelines for preparing, handling and cooking food.
Providing food at community and charity events | Food Standards Agency
This section of their website is useful for people organising charity and community events involving food. If you are using a caterer, you will need to ensure that they have a food hygiene certificate and public liability insurance.
Natasha’s Law – Allergy requirements
It is considered best practice to list allergens where possible, but as below, it’s not a legal requirement for the public:
1. Members of the public are not subject to the food standards regulations or ‘Natasha’s law’ (even if products were to be wrapped in cling film etc).
2. Where a school or organisation is “hosting” the tea party and inviting the public to donate goods, again they would not be subject to this regulation.
3. If a school or organisation is a registered food business and supplies their own products they would be subject to the regulation (as for any products they produce).
For more information please visit the Food Standards Agency (FSA) website: Homepage | Food Standards Agency
Can I host a tea party at work or at school?
Yes! You can host a tea party anywhere (as long as you have the relevant permission!). If you are hosting a public event, then please let us know, we would love to hear from you.
If I have more questions, who can I contact?
If you have questions about the NHS Big Tea, please email hello@anhsc.org.uk or contact the NHS Charity you chose to fundraise for when you registered to host an NHS Big Tea event.