Quick & Easy Ways To Donate To Charity This Christmas

Food banks are a lifeline for people who can no longer afford to feed themselves or their children and for the first time ever, many foodbanks have more demand than supplies. To keep these vital services running, you can search for your local food bank at the link below to drop off food and items, or make a one-off donation. You can also take part in Trussell Trust’s Tesco Food Collection to donate items at any Tesco store while you shop this Christmas.

Visit TrussellTrust.org

Many charities allow you to shop for products online which will then be donated to those most in need. One such charity is Beauty Banks, which supports people living in hygiene poverty. Via its online shop, you can choose from various gift vouchers or bundles containing items like toothpaste, deodorant and sanitary products.

Visit BeautyBanks.org.uk

With the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, Shelter is one of the many charities in need of donations, particularly during one the UK’s coldest winters in recent years. This year, Shelter has created an e-card Christmas service where you can choose from a range of animated cards for friends and family, and donate the cost of cards and stamps to Shelter. 

Visit Shop.Shelter.org.uk

Children’s charity Barnardo’s has a special Christmas appeal to help the 4.3m children living in poverty in the UK. If you can afford to do so, donating £27 can help give families the nourishing food they need from Christmas Eve through to Boxing Day. A £52 donation can also help cover the cost of a mattress for a child so they can sleep safely and comfortably each night.

Visit Barnardos.org.uk

Red Cross helps those in some of the poorest countries and people affected by conflict and war. This year, it has been concentrating its efforts to help those affected by the war in Ukraine. You can quickly set up a monthly standing order to help those most in need – just £10 a month could provide a hygiene kit to a family of five, £20 could provide five blankets to families taking shelter, and £30 could provide 3,600 chlorine tablets to ensure that families have access to clean, safe water. 

Visit Donate.RedCross.org.uk

If you want to shop directly for your chosen charity, donate via Amazon Smile. There, you’ll find Amazon wish lists from various charities, including food bank and homeless charity The Welcome Centre, which has an online list that’s updated each week. With Amazon Smile, you can also shop for yourself and still give back to charity. Simply enter the site through the Smile portal and Amazon will donate 0.05% of your purchase to the charity of your choice. 

Visit Smile.Amazon.co.uk

ITV recently launched its 1 Million Minutes campaign to encourage people to pledge their time to charities that tackle loneliness. To get involved, all you need to do is take the quick survey and pledge an amount of time for 2023. You’ll then be designated a charity and given details about how to get involved. The list includes Alzheimer’s Society, Alzheimer’s Research UK, Grief Encounter, Re-engage, Royal Voluntary Service, Sands, Home-Start and the Chatty Cafe Scheme.

Visit ITV.com

Lend With Care brings together entrepreneurs in low-income countries with the people who have the power to help them. There are currently 111 entrepreneurs around the world who have requested help via the charity, including Samnang in Cambodia who has asked for money to purchase fertiliser and pesticide for his farm, Lorena in Peru who is applying for a loan to buy tables and chairs for her café, and Inqlab in Pakistan who has requested a loan to help buy a tractor. You can donate a small percentage of the overall loan to help someone reach their goal, or make a generous donation – like £1,500 – to pay for it in full. 

Visit LendWithCare.org

World Vision supports vulnerable children in fragile and developing countries. This Christmas, you can give one of those children a life-changing gift to help them and their families. Choose from girls’ sanitary kits for £6, books for an after-school club for £16, a mosquito net for £8 or clean water for a family for £15. You can even buy a goat for a family for just £20 which can provide milk and fertiliser for the land. 

Visit WorldVision.org.uk