Everything you need to know before you begin the fundraising journey together.
Ways2Raise is built around a simple belief: the fundraising journey can be every bit as valuable as the adventure at the end of it. It gives a young person a chance to build confidence, learn to plan, promote an idea, manage money and discover what they can achieve—with a parent or guardian beside them.
You do not have to know how to fundraise before you begin. That is what the plan, tools and parent support are for.
It is for UK teenagers and their families who are working towards an expedition, Scout or Guide trip, DofE adventure, school journey or another life-changing goal. If there is a big target and a young person ready to work for it, you are in the right place.
Begin with the Fundraising Business Toolkit. It explains the few foundations that make a real difference: a dedicated email, a clear money route, easyfundraising and a shareable fundraising home. Then open a free account together and we will help build the plan around your own target.
That is completely normal. The Idea Library, How-To Guides and Fundraising Business Plan are designed to turn “where on earth do we start?” into a manageable next step. The aim is never to copy somebody else’s fundraiser; it is to find businesses and activities that suit your teenager.
Not at all. Bring what you have already raised, what is in the diary and what has felt difficult so far. You can use Ways2Raise to organise the next stage, record the income and costs, and give the rest of the journey a clearer shape.
The account is where a big target becomes a workable plan—not just a list of fundraising ideas.
Yes. There is no account fee, payment card, subscription or upgrade decision. Every signed-in account has access to the complete Ways2Raise toolkit, including the named Premium Resources area.
It is a free, shareable home that we help your teenager create as part of the foundation work. It brings their goal, their story, fundraising activities and progress together in one place. Your family decides when and how it is shared.
It turns the full trip target into smaller weekly and monthly goals, then helps you choose realistic ways to reach them. It is the difference between hoping the money comes in and running a practical route towards the target.
They can practise the skills behind any small business: planning, communicating, marketing, serving customers, tracking income, understanding costs and seeing the difference between money taken and true profit.
Yes. The dashboard, fundraising log and calendar help your family record activity, see progress against the target and keep the next event or idea visible. It makes the journey feel real and keeps the little wins from disappearing.
Every account includes the Fundraising Library, How-To Guides, Grant Finder, Fundraising Toolkit downloads, Skills Lab, planning tools and the account dashboard. The tools are there when you need them throughout the whole journey.
Parents do not have to carry the whole target. Your time, encouragement and practical support are what help their business grow.
Yes—parent or guardian involvement is part of the journey. You will use your email address during account set-up, help your teenager make safe choices and be there for the practical bits. The goal is to invest time and belief, not simply to pay the bill for them.
It is your PIN-protected parent space within Ways2Raise. It gives you calm, practical guidance while your teenager is getting on with their plan—so you have somewhere to turn when an event, an idea or a new question feels unfamiliar.
Yes. The parent resources help you navigate practical topics around activities and events, including where to look for guidance on areas such as raffles and public liability. You are not expected to guess your way through it alone.
Yes. The parent Facebook community gives families a place to share encouragement, ideas and useful tips with others who understand the same mixture of excitement, questions and “how are we going to do this?”
It gives parents a clear role in the account from the start. We ask for the parent or guardian’s email address and do not ask for a teenager’s surname during onboarding. The family can then make thoughtful choices about the information they share.
No. Ways2Raise does not take or hold supporter payments. The Getting Started toolkit explains a parent-managed option for eligible 6–15-year-olds that can provide a payment link for family and friends, alongside the free Ways2Raise page where a parent-approved link can sit.
The aim is a simple, supported system that your family can actually use—not another thing to manage.
Allow around 15 minutes to get the free account set up together. That early time is well spent: it is when we begin to shape the target, foundations and fundraising page that make the rest of the work easier.
Use it whenever there is something to plan, make, promote, run or record. A short weekly check-in works brilliantly: look at what came in, what was spent, what has moved forward and what the next small action will be.
Yes, when a parent has chosen and set up a suitable route. Ways2Raise provides the shareable fundraising home; the parent remains responsible for the provider account and decides whether to add their approved supporter link.
From time to time, Ways2Raise may recommend genuinely useful third-party services. If a link is an affiliate link, it will be clearly labelled. We do not sell your personal data, and you never need to use a partner to have a free Ways2Raise account.
Use the contact page to get in touch. If it is a parent-support question, the Parent Lounge and parent community are there to make sure you do not feel like you are figuring out the whole journey alone.
The goal may be big, but nobody has to solve it all today. Set up the foundations, choose one useful first business, keep the family informed and let the small, consistent steps do the work.
You bring the reason, the encouragement and the time. We will help you build the foundations, the plan and the tools around it.