It’s all things double here at Sight Support Derbyshire for Small Charity Week, with staff enjoying double their cups of coffee on Monday morning to kick things off!
Abigail Beaney, Fundraising and Marketing Lead at Sight Support Derbyshire, said:
“We’re so excited to be a part of the Big Give Small Charity Week campaign. It’s going to be a busy week making the most of this fantastic opportunity to double any donations we receive to the appeal so what better way to start than with double our usual cups of coffee!”
Following a competitive application process, we were selected to take part in the Big Give Small Charity Week Campaign. With 846 small charities applying from across the country, Sight Support Derbyshire were one of just 194 chosen to benefit from this match funding campaign.
These funds will be used for our ‘Tackling Loneliness’ project.
Loneliness can often go hand in hand with sight loss, especially in older people who may have other health or mobility issues which can further contribute to feelings of isolation. Sight Support Derbyshire’s Tackling Loneliness project aims to address this by providing group social activities and one to one befriending support.
Group social activities, enable people to get out and about, meet others who live with similar daily challenges for mutual support, have new experiences and make friends. Activities range from wellbeing sessions, to audio-described theatre trips, to gentle walks to crafts. For those not able to get out, a trained befriending volunteer visits typically once a week for a chat, or calls on the telephone, breaking the silence and bringing the outside world in.
The Tackling Loneliness project has a very positive impact on local older visually impaired people:
“She brings the outside in – I feel connected to the outside world again. I hope her visits never end!”
“I feel less isolated and know I have someone coming to chat. It’s lovely to know somebody is there for me.”
Donations to Sight Support Derbyshire’s Tackling Loneliness project will be generously matched by Big Give’s Champions during the campaign to make double the difference in supporting local people living with sight loss.
Claire Winfield, Chief Executive Officer at Sight Support Derbyshire, said:
“We’re thrilled to have been chosen to benefit from the Big Give’s Small Charity Week match funding campaign. We’re hoping to raise £1,000 in online donations from the generous people of Derby and Derbyshire which will be matched by the Big Give. This means we could raise up to £2,000 by the end of Small Charity Week. This would make a big difference in our mission to tackle loneliness amongst the older people in our community who are living with sight loss.”
On Monday 23rd June at noon, the very first Small Charity Week Match Funding Campaign opened. We feel honoured to be a part of it and are delighted to have raised £400 already towards our £1,000 target in just the first 24 hours!
This joint initiative from the Big Give, Global’s Make Some Noise and the NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations) means that any donations we received towards our Tackling Loneliness project between 23rd and 30th June 2025 will be DOUBLED by the Big Give’s generous donors, which includes organisations such as the People’s Postcode Lottery.
The donation page opened at midday on Monday 23rd June 2025 and closes at midday on Monday 30th June. Any donations made via this link during that time, up to a total of £1,000, will be doubled – making double the difference to local older people living with a visual impairment. All funds raised will be used to help tackle loneliness through volunteer befriending and social activities.
We really hope that local individuals, businesses and community groups will get behind this campaign and help us make the most of this unique opportunity to double the value of donations during Small Charity Week (23rd-30th June).
The donation page, which is only open for 1 week until midday on 30th June, can be found here: https://bit.ly/43x8aqN
