Rekindling the act of generosity to celebrate Giving Tuesday
When the concept of Giving Tuesday was born in 2012 in New York, the motive was to encourage people to do good and cause a shift towards celebrating radical generosity. Today, it’s blossomed into a global movement that inspires millions of people to donate their time, money, and skills for the greater good of communities in need.
Giving Tuesday falls on 29th November this year, and annually follows Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday – a peak shopping season of the year – with the hope that charities will gain the attention of people after their shopping sprees to attract donations and volunteer sign-ups.
Everyone has something to give – skills, knowledge, money, time, and their voice among others – towards a cause, campaign, or issue they care about.
However, the success of charitable giving hinges on a range of external factors. When people feel their personal financial situation is good, they are more likely to assist charities with their money and skills. Similarly, if the economy is moving in a positive direction, more people are willing to make more financial donations and give their time to charities.
Over the past year, emerging from a major pandemic, rising inflation and the costs of the war in Ukraine have all affected the cost of living negatively, limiting what people are able to give.
According to Charities Aid Foundation’s (CAF) 2022 UK Giving Report, the trend of fewer people giving compared to pre-pandemic levels seems to have been established. For every month of the year in 2021, the proportion of people making a donation was lower than the equivalent month in 2019. The results from 2022 so far follow a similar pattern of declined levels of giving, with the exception of March 2022 which saw a record monthly donation average in response to the war and refugee crisis in Ukraine.
More cause for optimism
In the midst of external challenges, there is more cause for optimism. Just as we collectively rose to the challenge of the pandemic to find a way, we can support one another and help charities adapt to expand their impact. With the academic attainment gap at its widest in ten years at both primary and secondary levels of education, the demand for tutoring support from schools is continuing to grow. We cannot look on as more disadvantaged children are unable to meet expected performance standards and likely to face limited life chances in pursuing careers.
With your help, no matter how little, we can turn things around by ensuring more children get the additional academic support they need, reach more schools in cold spots across the country, and in the long term, help to narrow the academic attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their better-off peers.
Be proud to give
It’s the time of the year to join something bigger, make a difference, and leave a lasting impact on the lives of vulnerable children. Make Giving Tuesday count and be proud to donate, volunteer or add your voice to a good cause, notwithstanding the challenging economic circumstances today.
Reconnect with your purpose and rekindle the spirit of generosity this Giving Tuesday to find a way to give back your time, efforts, or money. Celebrate the action of making a difference as simple acts of kindness and generosity have the power to inspire and raise hopes for many disadvantaged people.
Here’s how you can give and support our work:
Donate to our Big Give Christmas Challenge
We launch our Big Give Christmas Challenge – the UK’s biggest match funding campaign – on Giving Tuesday to raise funds to support our impact work. From midday on Tuesday, 29th November to Tuesday, 6th December, all donations made by you to Action Tutoring will be doubled, meaning one donation = twice the impact.
This year marks ten years of the Big Give Christmas Challenge and we believe your generosity will be shown in helping us raise funds to support our fight for quality and equitable education for every child facing disadvantage – #ThatsMyWhy!
Watch our Big Give Christmas Challenge 2022 campaign video on YouTube to find out more about why we do what we do. Kindly make your donation, no matter how small, to our Big Give Christmas Challenge via Action Tutoring’s campaign page. Tell us why you support our mission by sharing a post of your motivation with #ThatsMyWhy on social media and tag us.
With your contribution, 2023 can be a more impactful year, where more disadvantaged pupils receive the additional academic support they need to bounce back following the pandemic and excel for a better future.
Volunteer as a tutor
Volunteering with us as a tutor is another great way of helping disadvantaged pupils to improve their academic performance and meet expected standards. Volunteer to tutor pupils in English or maths at primary or secondary level, online or in-person, for one hour each week. No previous teaching experience is required and we will provide you with all the resources you need.
Share our cause
If you are unable to give your time or make a donation, you can support our cause by sharing the word. Simply share this post with friends, family and on your social media platforms, if you can.
As we celebrate Giving Tuesday, let’s remind ourselves to continue supporting causes close to our hearts by giving to help tackle the challenges that face us collectively. The heart of kindness and acts of generosity is vital to building a better future for everyone.
