Fundraising Campaigns Archives

The Big Give: Break the Barriers

This year, we’re aiming to raise £10,000 to create an emergency fund for survivors of sexual violence across Swindon & Wiltshire. This fund will provide essentials like clothing, toiletries, travel costs, phones, SIM cards, and care packs, removing financial barriers and helping survivors begin their recovery with dignity and safety.

Last year, your donations supported families affected by domestic abuse across Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly, helping them flee unsafe homes, access emergency devices, and even provide Christmas presents for children. It was a lifeline for many. This year, we want to do the same for those impacted by sexual violence.

What is The Big Give?

From 8th to 15th October, every £1 you donate will be doubled through The Big Give. That means your gift will go twice as far in supporting survivors.

Why Your Support Matters

Sexual violence can change lives in an instant. The journey to healing is often long, complex, and deeply personal. Survivors face not only emotional and physical trauma, but also practical and financial barriers that can make it harder to seek help, report the crime, or feel safe again.

Your donation helps us break down those barriers.

Transport costs can be the difference between someone reaching our Sexual Assault Referral Centre or staying isolated. A simple taxi fare can mean safety, access to medical care, and the chance to speak to someone who understands.
Clothing and toiletries offer dignity after an assault. When someone has to surrender their clothes as evidence, being able to change into something clean and comfortable is the first step toward reclaiming control.
Phones and SIM cards allow survivors to stay connected to loved ones, access support services, and feel less alone. For those who’ve had to leave work or home, this connection is a lifeline.
Safety devices and alarms help restore a sense of security. After experiencing violence, feeling safe again is essential to recovery.

Support during police reporting and court proceedings can make a difficult experience more bearable. Stress balls, fidget spinners, and other calming tools help ease anxiety. We also offer emotional and practical support and can cover travel costs for court dates.

These are not luxuries. They are essentials. And they are often the things that can’t be funded by traditional funding.

Last year, your generosity helped families fleeing domestic abuse. This year, we’re asking you to help survivors of sexual violence, to give them the tools, resources, and compassion they need to begin healing.

Double Your Impact between 8^th to 15^th October

Your donation helps break down the barriers that prevent survivors from seeking help. And through The Big Give, your support goes even further.

Please help us Break the Barriers. Help us support those affected by sexual violence and abuse.

We are aiming to raise £10,000 to set up a Crisis Fund for Women & Girls Fleeing Domestic Abuse

This year we are aiming to raise £10,000 to set up a Crisis Fund for Women & Girls Fleeing Domestic Abuse (£5,000 in online donations, which will then be matched by The Big Give).

Domestic abuse will affect 1 in 3 women during their lifetime and First Light is seeing a huge increase in high-risk families who are coming to us for support during extremely challenging moments of their lives.

The campaign week runs from 12pm, Thursday 10th October – 12pm, Thursday 17th October and thanks to The Big Give, any online donations made to First Light during that week will be doubled – so whatever amount you are able to give will be worth twice as much.

The money raised from this year’s match fund campaign will allow us to set up a Crisis Fund. The Crisis Fund will enable us to provide women and their families with equipment to keep them safe, such as mobile phones, letterbox locks, and camera doorbells; help support them with moving costs; and provide them with clothing and other items when they’ve had to leave their home with nothing.

Having immediate funding available for people fleeing domestic abuse is so important…

Being able to provide toiletries, travel, food and clothing will keep a person or family safe.
Providing a mobile phone will mean that an individual fleeing their abuser will be able to do so without the worry of being tracked or harassed by phone calls and text messages.
By providing a train ticket/taxi fare to those who do not have their own transport means that individuals can flee more easily.

Any online donations made to First Light during the seven days of the campaign will be doubled. If you would like to support our work this year, we strongly recommend doing so during this campaign week, when your donation will be doubled and make even more of a difference to us.

One donation, twice the impact.

Please visit our dedicated Big Give page to find out about how you, your business or your community can help support this year’s fundraising campaign. And keep an eye out for more information to follow in the run up to the campaign itself.

The Big Give Women & Girls Match Fund campaign

The Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund is a 7 day match funding campaign working with charities like ourselves who are dedicated to serving the women and girls in our communities.

Last year’s campaign titled, Sexual violence: You’re Not Alone, was a huge success, raising an incredible £5,000 in one week to help support women & girls affected by sexual violence. Thanks to everyone who donated, the Big Give has meant that we have been able to provide 19 women and girls with sexual violence counselling, each receiving a course of 6 free therapy sessions.

One of our clients, Issy, is a 19-year-old girl who was referred to our Plymouth Sexual Violence Counselling Service. I’ll let Issy tell you herself how the support of the Big Give campaign has made such an incredible difference to her and “changed her life”.

This year we are aiming to raise £10,000 to set up a Crisis Fund for Women & Girls Fleeing Domestic Abuse (£5,000 in online donations, which will then be matched by The Big Give).

Please visit our dedicated Big Give page to find out about how you, your business or your community can help support this year’s fundraising campaign. And keep an eye out for more information to follow in the run up to the campaign itself.

The Big Give Match Funding Campaign

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The Big Give Women & Girls Match Funding Campaign

We are aiming to raise £10,000 to set up a Crisis Fund for women and girls fleeing domestic abuse, and we need your help.

Violence against women and girls has continued to rise over the past year, yet only 1.8% of UK grants from Trusts & Foundations are directed towards this cause. Domestic abuse will affect 1 in 3 women during their lifetime. More women than ever before are reaching out to First Light after experiencing domestic abuse. We support high-risk families during their most challenging moments. In 2022, 20% of children in the UK lived with an adult displaying abusive behaviours.

The funds raised from this match funding campaign will allow us to set up a Crisis Fund for women and girls fleeing domestic abuse. This will enable them to leave abusive relationships by providing travel costs, clothing, electrical goods, and moving costs. It will help support women and girls to feel safe and empowered, providing shelter, food, and clothing for themselves and any children they may have fled with.

What’s the Big Give?

The Big Give is a match funding campaign, which means they will match any money we raise within one week in October. Imagine if your donation could have double the impact. That’s exactly why the Big Give exists – to double your donation. The Big Give brings together larger donors, like philanthropists, foundations, and businesses, with the giving public and the charities who need them.

During the October campaign week (from 12pm Thursday 10th October – 12pm Thursday 17th October), any online donations made to First Light via our website will be doubled. So £10 becomes £20, and £50 becomes £100.

We aim to raise £10,000 in just one week to set up a Crisis Fund for women and girls fleeing domestic abuse. To achieve this, we need to raise £5,000 in online donations, which will then be matched by the Big Give.

Last Year’s Success

Thanks to your incredible generosity, The Big Give was a huge success last year, raising £5,000 to support women and girls affected by sexual violence. Since the campaign ended in October, we have supported 2,516 women and girls across all our sexual violence services. These include our Devon & Cornwall, and Swindon & Wiltshire Independent Sexual Violence Advisory (ISVA) Services, our Swindon & Wiltshire Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), our Sexual Violence Counselling, and our Recovery Pathways programme.

Funding from The Big Give has enabled us to provide sexual violence counselling to 19 women and girls. Each course of 6 free therapy sessions costs £270. We’ve had 317 women and girls attend our Plymouth Sexual Violence Counselling Service since October, highlighting the importance of funding like this and the difference it makes in the number of people we’re able to help.

Fundraising Packs

Issy, a 19-year-old girl, was referred to our Plymouth Sexual Violence Counselling Service. Here’s how your support has made an incredible difference in her life: “It changed my life.”

How You Can Get Involved with The Big Give 2024

There are three main ways you can support this year’s fundraising campaign:

Host a Fundraising Event: Help raise money and make a donation to the campaign. To assist with your fundraising ideas, we’ve put together a fundraising pack to help you plan and advertise your event.
Make an Online Donation: You can donate to our Crisis Fund for women and girls fleeing domestic abuse anytime between 12pm, Thursday 10th October, and 12pm, Thursday 17th October 2024.
Share Our Campaign: Share any of our campaign social media posts across your networks, and with your family, friends, and colleagues.

IMPORTANT NOTE: All money raised from your fundraising will need to be paid to us as an online donation by yourself via our donate page between 12pm 10th October – 12pm 17th October.

First Light aims to raise £5,000 through the Big Give Match Funding campaign

We’re very excited to announce that First Light has been selected to participate in the Big Give Women and Girls Match Funding campaign taking place next month.

We’re aiming to raise £5,000 to help support our sexual violence services, as more women and girls than ever before are reaching out to First Light after experiencing sexual violence. Your support will help victims of sexual violence to stay safe, exercise their rights and recover from trauma.

We dealt with nearly 3,000 enquiries last year and overwhelmed services mean our waiting lists for vital support are growing. Delays in Police investigations and court hearings also mean that many victims are waiting up to two years for any prospect of closure. Less than 2 in 100 rapes recorded by police in 2022 resulted in a charge that same year, let alone a conviction. This leaves many women and girls struggling to recover from continuous traumatisation.

Any online donations made to us during the seven days of the campaign, 11th – 18th October 2023, via BigGive.org will be doubled. So if you would like to support our work this year, we highly recommend doing so during this campaign week, when your donation will be doubled and make even more of a difference to us. One donation, twice the impact.

At First Light, we don’t believe that anybody should have to wait for support. We need your help to increase our capacity, cutting down waiting lists and ensuring help is there for every woman and girl, whenever they need it.

Watch out for more information to follow in the run up to the campaign.