Plan your Giving Tuesday fundraiser in 30 minutes
Giving Tuesday falls on Tuesday 1 December this year. Individuals can take part by fundraising, volunteering, campaigning or giving in another way, and the activity can happen before or after the day itself.1
That gives you time to build a small fundraiser around something you can complete well. Set a timer for 30 minutes and use this plan to turn a good intention into a clear first step.
Six minutes: choose one charity and one outcome
Start with a charity you care about and can name clearly. If you are fundraising independently, describe your activity as being "in aid of" that charity. The Charity Commission and Fundraising Regulator say public fundraisers are responsible for the appeals they organise, including explaining who will receive the money and what it is intended to support.2
Write one sentence that combines the charity, your action and the intended outcome. For example: "I am walking every day in November in aid of Northside Community Kitchen, helping it provide warm meals during winter."
Check the intended use with the charity if you want to raise money for a particular project. Our five checks before sharing a fundraising page will help you cover the charity name, purpose, target and backup plan.
Eight minutes: write the page in four parts
Your first draft needs four useful details: why this charity matters to you, what you will do, when you will do it and what donations will support. Add a realistic target and explain what happens if plans change.
Keep expenses clear. Tell donors in advance if you intend to deduct any costs from the money raised. The public guidance also asks online fundraisers to explain platform fees and optional tips. Wonderful.org currently charges no platform or processing fee, makes no tip request and passes donations directly from the donor's account to the charity.3
Read the page once on your phone. A new visitor should understand the fundraiser without opening another post or sending you a message.
Six minutes: pick an action you can sustain
Choose an activity that fits your time, health, budget and the people you hope will join in. A daily walk, a small creative challenge or a community activity can all work when the commitment is easy to explain.
Give the action a clear beginning and end. If it depends on weather, travel or completing a challenge, add one sentence explaining what will happen to donations if you need to change the plan. Ask the venue or charity about any permissions, safeguarding or practical requirements before announcing an event.
Five minutes: plan four updates
Put four dates in your calendar: the page launch, a progress update, the final 24-hour reminder and a thank-you after the day. Each update should add something useful, such as a training moment, a reason the cause matters, a milestone or a genuine change of plan.
Wonderful fundraisers can post updates from the page dashboard, where they remain visible to supporters.4 When donations arrive, use these short donor thank-you messages as a starting point and add one true detail of your own.
Five minutes: prepare the first message
Write one calm message for the people most likely to care. Say what you are doing, who it supports, why you chose it and where they can read the full details. The Fundraising Regulator advises that social posts should identify the beneficiaries, intended impact and scope of the appeal, with the complete information easy to reach when a post has limited space.5
Send the direct fundraising-page link and let each person decide in their own time. If someone asks about the payment journey, share our guide to explaining an online donation clearly.
Start with one sentence today
Open a blank note and write your charity, your action and the result you hope to support in one sentence. That sentence can become the centre of your Giving Tuesday page, your first message and every update that follows.
This article provides general information, not legal advice. Fundraising responsibilities depend on the activity and location, so check the current guidance and ask the charity when your plans involve an event, restricted purpose or significant costs.
Footnotes
- Giving Tuesday UK, 2026 date and participation guidance. Read the Giving Tuesday questions and answers.
- Charity Commission and Fundraising Regulator, public fundraising guidance, published 12 June 2026. Read the public guidance.
- Wonderful.org, current fees and donation-flow information. Read the fees page.
- Wonderful support, posting fundraising-page updates. Read the support guide.
- Fundraising Regulator, fundraising on social media, updated 21 July 2026. Read the social media guidance.