The NHS Big Tea Frequently Asked Questions
About the NHS Big Tea
When should I host my NHS Big Tea?
Where and when you host your fundraising tea party is up to you. Whether you get together at home, in the office or even in your school, you can celebrate on the NHS’s Birthday on 5 July or any morning, afternoon, evening or weekend during July.
How do I sign up?
How do I host an NHS Big Tea?
Sign up to host an NHS Big Tea and depending on governments' guidelines at the time you host your NHS Big Tea, you can choose to host inside, outside, or online. Choose when you are going to host your event, you can celebrate on the NHS’s Birthday on 5 July or choose any morning, afternoon, evening, or weekend during July.
You could set out a stall outside, in a garden and offer take away cakes, or host your friends at your home, office kitchen, staff room or community space. Or share a cuppa and cake virtually.
Once you’ve signed up, we’ll send you a fundraising pack that includes a game and lots of fundraising ideas too. There are invites and other brilliant resources and a guide to help you plan your NHS Big Tea.
Your guests can donate to your NHS Big Tea fundraising page using a credit/debit card or they can give cash or cheque donations to you to add to your fundraising total.
When you register to host you will be sent a unique QR code which will link to your NHS Big Tea fundraising page. Inside your fundraising pack are QR code stickers that your guests can scan and donate securely online to your NHS Big Tea fundraising total, without having to exchange physical cash.
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 https://www.nhsbigtea.co.uk/resources
When will my NHS Big Tea fundraising pack arrive?
When you sign up to host an NHS Big Tea, you can access downloadable materials straight away in our Resources section or order a postal fundraising pack. You can host your event whenever suits you, but it takes 7 – 10 days from registration for your kit to arrive, so make sure you order it 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, explaining that you would like to cancel this year including the address you registered with. You can still donate to your NHS Big Tea fundraising page, even if you are unable to host an NHS Big Tea party this year.
Fundraising
Can I fundraise for my local NHS Charity?
Yes, when you sign up to host, 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 sign up as a host.
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 fundraising pack or you can search for your NHS Big Tea JustGiving page on this 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 cheque donations, please complete, and return the Paying In form included in your NHS Big Tea fundraising pack.
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.
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.
What is a QR code?
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?
Gift Aid is a government scheme that enables charities to reclaim the Income and/or Capital Gains Tax that supporters have already paid. To allow us to claim this back, you must be a UK taxpayer and have paid sufficient Income and/or Capital Gains Tax to cover the amount of all Gift Aid donations made for that tax year. Donors who have not been charged sufficient tax to cover the Income Tax deducted from their Gift Aid donations are responsible for pay any difference.
Gift Aid donation, it means we can increase your guests’ donations by 25p for every £1 without costing them another penny!
We are able to reclaim tax on voluntary donations made by your guests once they have: made an individual donation, filled in all the spaces on the Paying In Form included in your fundraising pack, and ticked that all-important Gift Aid box.
Only personal donations are eligible for Gift Aid. If you’re paying in a collection, 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!
How do I host a tea party safely?
We hope that this year we can go back to in person, socially distanced, if required, tea parties. However, the safety of our supporters is the most important thing, please don’t carry out any fundraising activities for NHS Charities Together if you are feeling unwell or if you or any of you guests test positive for covid, or if you feel you can’t take part safely.
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.