Blog & guides
Field notes on raising more
Practical guides on charity auctions, pledge drives, sourcing lots and running a fundraising night that beats its target.
Charity Event Debrief
How to run a charity event debrief that changes next year’s gala
How do you run a charity event debrief? Within two weeks, with five questions, the numbers read in layers, and a one-page template for next year's gala.
Read article →Charity Auctioneer Contract
What should a charity auctioneer booking agreement include?
What should a charity auctioneer booking agreement include? Dates, scope, fees, deposits, cancellation, illness cover, insurance, data and recordings.
Read article →Who Runs Night At
Who should be in charge on the night of a charity gala?
Who should be in charge on the night of a charity gala? One named night lead, with a who-decides-what table for the chair, host, auctioneer and venue.
Read article →Children In Need Fundraising
How to take part in Children in Need properly: a charity-event guide
How to take part in Children in Need properly: the 2026 Appeal date, BBC Children in Need's rules on collections, raffles and Pudsey, and paying the money in.
Read article →Is Gala Profit Taxable
Is money raised at a charity gala taxable? What HMRC says
Is money raised at a charity gala taxable? Usually not, if HMRC's fundraising-event conditions are met. The exemption, its limits and what to check first.
Read article →Auction Lot Doesnt Sell
What happens if a charity auction lot doesn’t sell, and what to do in the first ten seconds
What happens if a charity auction lot doesn't sell: it stays with the charity, and the auctioneer has seconds to drop the opening, pair it, pull it or park it.
Read article →Auctioneer Gavel
Auctioneer gavel: what it does and whether a gala needs one
An auctioneer gavel marks the moment a sale is complete, but a charity gala can run without one. The law, the history, and how to choose or borrow a gavel.
Read article →Fundraiser Challenges
Fundraiser challenges: what treks, skydives and runs really net a charity
Fundraiser challenges raise money only after costs. See how minimum pledges, operator fees, duty of care and Gift Aid decide what a charity keeps.
Read article →Charity Trustee Fundraising
Charity trustee fundraising responsibilities: what the board actually owns
Charity trustee fundraising responsibilities at an event: the CC20 duties, due diligence before booking, the written agreement, monitoring, and board reporting.
Read article →Donor Data Protection
Donor data protection charity checklist for auction night
Donor data protection charity guidance for auction night: who picks up the bid sheets, what must never go on paper, and what you shred by Monday.
Read article →Auction No Shows
Charity event no shows: what the empty seats really cost
Charity event no shows cost far more than the catering. A realistic drop-off rate to plan for, the reminders that work, and how to reseat a thin room.
Read article →Selling Tables Companies
Selling tables to companies for a charity event
Selling tables at a charity event to companies: why it is not a ticket sale, what a firm is really buying, how to price it, and how to stop a silent table.
Read article →Every guide, by topic
The full library of fundraising and auctioneering guides, grouped so you can find what you need.
Hiring an auctioneer
- Benefit auctioneer: what the term means and who needs one
- Buyers premium explained: should a charity auction charge one?
- Charity auctioneer commission and fees, explained
- Charity auctioneer services: what’s actually included when you hire one
- Charity event host or auctioneer: do you need one, or both?
- Do I need a charity auctioneer, or can a volunteer run our auction?
- Event auctioneer: what one does and when to hire one
- Freelance auctioneer vs agency: hiring an independent charity auctioneer
- Fundraising auctioneer: what the role actually involves and how to hire one
- Gala dinner auctioneer: what to look for when hiring one
- Hire an auctioneer: what to check before you book one for your event
- How much do auctioneers charge for a fundraising event?
- How much does a charity auctioneer cost? Flat fee vs commission explained
- How to become a great charity auctioneer: the honest guide
- How to find and vet a charity auctioneer near you
- Searching for an auctioneer near me? Here’s what actually matters for a charity event
- What does a professional auctioneer do, and why does it matter for your event?
- What does an auctioneer do? A plain guide to the job
- What is a charity auctioneer? And what do they actually do?
- Why corporate CSR events need a professional charity auctioneer, not just an MC
- Working with a charity auctioneer: how to brief yours for the best result
Running the night
- Charity auctions: how to run one that actually raises serious money
- Charity gala running order: a timeline that raises more
- How a charity auctioneer builds bidding momentum
- How bidding actually works at charity benefit auctions
- How to MC a charity event that raises more money
- How to plan a charity gala dinner that raises more than last year
- How to promote a charity auction and fill the room
- How to run a charity gala auction that raises real money
- How to run a charity raffle in the UK: rules, prizes and pitfalls
- How to run a live auction at a charity event
- How to run a silent auction: rules, setup and what actually raises more
- How to set a fundraising target for your charity event
- How to source charity auction lots without losing money to commission
- How to start a fundraiser: the decisions you make before you pick an idea
- How to thank your charity auction donors (and keep them)
Lots and items
- Celebrity auction charity events: what actually raises the bids
- Charity auction consignment items explained
- Charity auction themes: ideas to build your whole event around
- Charity auctions for animal charities
- Charity bachelor auctions: how the format works (and when to use it)
- Charity vacation auctions: sourcing and selling travel and holiday lots
- How to run an auction of promises that actually sells
- How to write a charity donation request that gets a yes
- Raffle prize ideas that sell more tickets at a charity event
- Signed football shirt auctions for charity: how to run one
- Sports memorabilia at a charity auction: how to source and sell signed lots
- The best auction items for fundraising (and what quietly flops)
- What’s actually in a charity auction catalogue or brochure
Pledges, software and formats
- Arts gala fundraising: running a charity auction for a creative crowd
- Charity gala Europe: lessons from a Monaco fundraiser that raised over 1,000,000 euros
- Do you need auction software for your charity auction?
- Free charity auction software: what it actually gets you (and what it doesn’t)
- Fund-a-need paddle raise: how to structure it for maximum giving
- Hiring a charity auctioneer for events across the UK and Ireland
- How a live pledge boosts your charity gala total
- How to run an online charity auction (and when a live one raises more)
- Live auction vs silent auction: which raises more for your cause?
- Pledge cards: how to use them at a charity gala without killing the mood
- Pledge drive vs live auction: which raises more at your charity gala?
- Reserve prices at a charity auction: when to set one, and when not to
- School fundraising auction ideas: how to run a PTA auction that works
- What is a charity fundraising auction and how does it work?
Ideas and event formats
- Black tie gala: what the dress code actually does to your fundraising night
- Cancer fundraiser ideas: events that raise serious money for cancer charities
- Charity auction experience ideas that raise the most
- Charity auction ideas for corporate fundraising events
- Charity auction ideas: lots, themes, and ways to raise more on the night
- Charity ball: how to organise one that raises real money
- Charity fundraising ideas: how to pick the right one
- Christmas fayre ideas: stalls and games that raise the most
- Christmas fundraising ideas for charities, from carol nights to Christmas ball auctions
- Church fundraising ideas that go beyond the jumble sale
- Club fundraising ideas that work for sports and social clubs
- Corporate fundraising ideas that work for CSR events
- Easy fundraising ideas you can set up in a week
- Football card fundraiser: how it works and how to run one legally
- Football club fundraising ideas that raise real money for grassroots clubs
- Fundraising events: 15 formats that get guests through the door
- Fundraising games for charity events that raise real money
- Fundraising ideas for big money: the formats that raise thousands, not hundreds
- Fundraising ideas for work that staff will actually join in with
- Gala dress code: what each term means and how to word it
- Halloween fundraising ideas for a charity night that actually raises money
- Heads and tails game: how to run it at a charity event
- Hospice fundraising ideas: auction and gala formats that raise more
- How to organise a charity football match that raises real money
- How to run a casino night charity fundraiser that actually raises money
- How to run a charity golf day that raises real money
- How to run a Christmas raffle: prizes, ticket rules and the licence line
- Is money raised at a charity gala taxable? What HMRC says
- Masquerade ball ideas for a charity fundraiser that raises real money
- Movember ideas: fundraising events that raise more than a moustache
- Prize and donation ideas for a charity auction
- Quirky fundraising ideas that people will actually pay for
- Quiz night charity fundraiser: how to run one that raises real money
- Red Nose Day fundraiser ideas: how to take part properly
- School fundraising ideas for PTAs beyond the cake sale
- Summer fete ideas: how to run a day that raises money
- What is a gala? A plain guide to gala dinners and charity galas
- White collar boxing for charity: how a fight night raises real money
- Who should be in charge on the night of a charity gala?
More guides
- After dinner speaker for a charity dinner: when to book one and where they fit
- Auction lot donation form: the fields that matter on the night
- Auction paddles: do you need bidding paddles at a charity auction?
- Auction spotters: how to run the bid-taking team in the room
- Auctioneer chant: why a charity auctioneer talks to the room instead
- Auctioneer gavel: what it does and whether a gala needs one
- Bid increments at a charity auction: how to set them and when to move them
- Charity auction run sheet: lot order, timings and cues
- Charity auction VAT: what HMRC’s rules mean on the night
- Charity auctioneer tips that actually increase bids on the night
- Charity cricket: the format, the square, and where the money is
- Charity event budget: what to spend, and what comes back
- Charity event no shows: what the empty seats really cost
- Charity event poster: what it must say to sell a ticket
- Charity event ticket price: what to charge, and what it costs you
- Charity event venue: how to pick a room that raises more
- Charity fashion show: how to run one that raises more than ticket sales
- Charity trustee fundraising responsibilities: what the board actually owns
- Code of Fundraising Practice: what it means for your charity auction and gala
- Collecting payment at a charity auction: on the night or by invoice?
- Corporate donations: how companies give, and what to ask for
- Donor data protection charity checklist for auction night
- Famous auctioneers: what the best ones do on the rostrum
- Fundraiser challenges: what treks, skydives and runs really net a charity
- Fundraiser speech examples: what to say before the live pledge
- Fundraising campaign: how to plan one with a live event as the peak
- Fundraising strategy for charities: where events fit, and where they don’t
- Fundraising thermometer: how to use a live totaliser at your event
- Gift in kind charity donations: tax, accounts and the auction room
- Giving Tuesday: how UK charities can use it, and where a live event fits
- How to organise a charity concert that raises more than ticket sales
- How to organise a sponsored walk: route, permissions and safety
- How to put on a charity rugby match: clubs, RFU rules and the money
- How to raise more money at a charity event: the levers most organisers miss
- How to run a charity art auction: artists, reserves and the viewing
- How to run a charity event debrief that changes next year’s gala
- How to take part in Children in Need properly: a charity-event guide
- Match funding for charities: how to use it to double your gala total
- Mental health fundraiser ideas: events that raise money with care
- Money can’t buy auction lots: sourcing, valuing and selling them
- Money tree fundraiser: how to run one and what it raises
- Selling tables to companies for a charity event
- Signed memorabilia authentication: proving a charity auction lot is genuine
- Sponsorship form for a charity event: what it must say and the Gift Aid rules
- Sponsorship packages for a charity event: how to build tiers sponsors will buy
- Sports dinner charity auction: how to structure the evening for maximum bids
- Table captains fundraising: recruit, brief and thank them
- What happens if a charity auction lot doesn’t sell, and what to do in the first ten seconds
- What is a commission bid? Absentee bidding at a charity auction explained
- What is a fundraiser? Fundraiser meaning, the main types and which raise most
- What is a tombola? How to run one at a charity event
Areas I cover
- Bath charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Berkshire charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Birmingham auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Brighton auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Bristol auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Cambridge charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Cardiff auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Charity auctioneer for European and international galas
- Charity auctioneer Kent
- Charity auctioneer South East
- Cheshire charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Cotswolds charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Edinburgh auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising nights
- Essex auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Glasgow auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Hampshire auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Hertfordshire auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Leeds auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Liverpool auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- London auctioneer for charity events: how to hire the right one
- Manchester auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Monaco auctioneer: a €1 million charity gala at the Yacht Club de Monaco
- Newcastle auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Northamptonshire auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Nottingham auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Oxford charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events
- Plymouth auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Sheffield auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- Spain auctioneer for charity galas on the Costa del Sol
- Surrey auctioneer for charity galas and fundraising events
- What should a charity auctioneer booking agreement include?
- York charity auctioneer for galas and fundraising events