It has been a long and varied 2022 for children’s charities and at Little Lives UK but we have managed to achieve so much in the last 12 months. Now we have to look forward to 2023 and the challenges and triumphs that we will undoubtedly face.
At Little Lives UK our aim is to support as many children around the UK who are living with disabilities or are from disadvantaged backgrounds so we are always changing our approach and working with new people to achieve this. To do this we must look into what is coming in 2023 for ourselves and for the Third Sector as a whole.
What is going to change for charities in 2023?
There are a number of things that charities will have to do to keep fundraising, keep people interested in their charity, overcome financial hardships and keep being able to support those in need.
In 2023 it is likely that charities are going to have to write in more sustainable strategies and practices when it comes to planning and developing ways to progress. For example, charities will have to concentrate on using sustainable technology throughout. Being one of the most important issues of our time, charities should be setting a good example on sustainability and reusable goods.
Charities can achieve this many ways, for example they can donate their unwanted electronics to other charities or people who need them. They can use recycled tech and invest in low energy storage, cloud computing and the use of electric transport and solar power where possible.
As more and more people pay for goods and services via cashless means, charities are going to have to adapt to this and invest in contactless collection points and giving more cashless options on how to donate.
Research from Charities Aid Foundation found that there has been a sustained increase in cashless giving since 2020. Also, according to Non-Profit Source, of those who donate to charities, 25% of people use a mobile device and this number is only growing. Charities can improve their service and stay relevant when it comes to technology by introducing donate buttons, QR codes, text to donate, cryptocurrencies and blockchain.
Because of the cost-of-living crisis less and less people are donating money to charities. This is only natural because people need the money for themselves at this hard time. Charities will have to adapt and though seemingly impossibly, make the money they receive go further. This is hard though as much like businesses; premises, bills, wage and donations all have to be paid for. This can be exceedingly difficult for smaller charities.
These are a few brief ideas of what charities need to look out for going forward to ensure that the most people as possible can be helped out. But what does 2023 hold for Little Lives UK?
2023 and Little Lives UK
This March, we will be celebrating our sixth year as a registered charity. In 2023 we will continue to support children around the UK by providing donations of technology to those who need it, continue to provide funding for activities that benefit the lives of children, provide the means for children to access sport through our Sports Teams Sponsorship campaign and provide free mental health sessions for children around the UK who cannot wait on long NHS waiting lists or cannot afford private counselling.
We are going to stay committed to the partners we have made over the years, carry on providing funding for children around the UK and carry-on giving children the childhood they deserve.
Campaigns
We are also looking at plans to expand the work we do with local governments, government contracts and working with local councils to support more children on a wider scale but also on a more personal and local level. We have been working on looking through proposals and tenders as a charity to find contracts align with the work we do. By doing this we aim to be able to help children around the UK on a wider scale and as part of larger partnerships.
We would like to be able to find government contracts that would allow us to expand our reach where it comes to who and how we can support children around the UK.
We are also planning to create a new campaign that can hopefully incorporate work with improving the environment and teaching children the importance of caring for natural habitats and the world we live in. As mentioned above, this is one of the biggest challenges we as a world are facing at the moment so we want to ensure that we teach the future generations exactly why it is so important to make the same mistakes made previously.
This year we intend to start campaigns that sees local children participate on beach clean ups, forest clean ups, nature workshops and recycling sessions that make the things that many adults struggle with, second nature.
Partners
We are lucky at Little Lives UK to be working with a great group of partners who help us to further our work and support as many children as possible. This year we would love to carry on working with our partners, working with them to further the work they do that supports so many children and the work they can help us to do to support so many children.
Without these partnerships we would not be able to function as a charity. We are truly grateful for their support and look forward to continuing our successful partnerships
Scope
For the past year our scope has grown from London-centric to UK wide. A UK wide approach and scope is going to be the continued goal in 2023.
If funding allows, we would also like to go from supporting approximately eight organisations a month through our Children’s Community Support to helping and funding at least ten a month.
We would like to grow the charity further in every aspect. We would like to ensure that more children can benefit from all of the campaigns we run and we would like to scale the charity up so we can be recognised on a national level as a charity who are dedicated to helping as many children as possible.
Ambassadors
In the past year we started to work with some great new ambassadors who have been successful in many of their own fields. In 2023, we will continue to work closely with our ambassadors in fundraising, events and in ways that can help to further our charity’s work.
We plan to work with our ambassadors in the fields they are experts in. For example we work with a couple of individuals who have excelled at sport, so we would love to use their expertise to show children what can be achieved through sport and why it is important to be active.
Next Year
We anticipate that 2023 will be busier than any other year as the cost-of living crisis continues and people around the UK are struggling to get by and support their children with the simple things that a lot of people take for granted.
We know that we will need more support than ever this year but we are excited to be able to start helping more children and young people than ever before. We are looking for to 2023 and the challenges it will bring with optimism.
The last thing to say is thank you for everyone’s support and help this year. We could not have done it without you. Here’s to 2023.
