What is Match Giving? Match Giving is simply a pledge by a company to match a fundraising quota of an employee. There will be a predetermined amount decided by the company and comes from the companies own pocket so to speak. It is very common for the amount to be as much as £1,500 but you must check if your company has a policy and what the boundaries of that policy are.

When running for charity Match Giving can be one of the most useful pieces of artillery in a fundraisers arsenal, especially when you are asked to reach a high fundraising target. For example,a great number of charities will request a minimum sponsorship level for the Virgin London Marathon and sometimes this minimum can be as high as £2000. The fantastic thing about Match Giving is that it halves the amount that you need to raise as a fundraiser. On this basis, if your target is £2000 then with Match Giving your target is actually only £1000.

Do not hesitate to speak to your employer about Match Giving and if they have not heard of it, encourage them to look into it. The reason being that every penny they put towards your sponsorship will actually be deducted from their Corporation Tax. If they are not aware of this, they should be! It allows them to donate to charity and can in some cases reduce the amount of tax they pay. So it's win, win for everyone!

Finally, the best way to use Match Giving is to find or negotiate a figure that your company will match and then use this as your minimum fundraising target. It is a real shame to only raise a few hundred pounds when your company will match up to £1,500 This may be the best opportunity you have to make a huge difference to a charity, so grab it with both hands!