Face-to-Face Fundraising

A man and 2 women are standing around a red table with brochures and pamphlets on it. Behind them is a banner that reads "Hearing Dogs for Deaf People"

Why we’re undertaking F2F?

Face-to-face fundraising is a new initiative for Hearing Dogs to help raise awareness and inspire members of the public to sponsor a puppy at private sites and shows, as well as help to generate new income to fund and grow our hearing dog and Hearing Link Services.

This method of fundraising will allow us to have one-on-one conversations with people who might be interested in supporting us, or are unaware of the work we do and the impact we make to the lives of deaf people. Raising awareness of the range of services we offer means that more people will know where to find help if they need us, while also providing the opportunity to support us by becoming a puppy sponsor.

Our agency

We have chosen to partner with Family First Professionals (FFP) to represent us at shows and private sites. All of their fundraisers are trained to FFP’s high standards and are compliant with regulations and codes of conduct set by the Fundraising Regulator and Chartered Institute of Fundraising. Fundraisers employed with FFP are all employed or self-employed and are paid the living wage; their staff are not paid on a commission-only basis. This ensures that all fundraisers foster a strong sense of community at FFP, which we believe helps to deliver a consistent supporter experience. Fundraisers working with us will need to undertake additional training so they can confidently and professionally represent the values of our charity.

How to recognise our fundraisers

All fundraisers working on behalf of Hearing Dogs for Deaf People will be wearing an ID badge which displays their name, employee number, photograph, the Hearing Dogs' & Family First Professionals' logos, and our supporter services contact details. They will also be wearing branded clothes, which may vary seasonally (t-shirts, fleece and waterproof jacket). Fundraisers should also have Hearing Dogs' materials to hand that include our charity specific information.

Where do we fundraise? (and when)

Our fundraisers work nationally in a variety of locations. You can see where we are this week below:

FAQs

When I sign up, do my donations come directly to you?

Your sponsorship helps fund puppy training from when they’re born, through the first year of their training, then a further few months of advanced training. During this final stage of training, our dogs learn how to recognise sounds and alert a person to them, until they’re placed with their deaf partner. Our commitment doesn’t stop there as we then support the partnership right up until their hearing dog retires. In total, this can cost around £40,000.

Your gift will also help fund and develop our range of Hearing Link Services, offering personalised peer support through practical and emotional support for hearing loss.

Will fundraisers ever ask for cash?

Fundraisers promoting our Sponsor a Puppy scheme will only collect your information on a secure electronic tablet to complete recurring card payment for puppy sponsorships. They will never ask you for cash donations or be allowed to take cash donations.

If you have any concerns, you can see where we’re fundraising this week or contact our friendly Supporter Services Team on 01844 348 109 or email us on supporter@hearingdogs.org.uk. Please be aware that we also organise volunteer collections through our Community Fundraising team; they will be collecting cash and never ask for bank details.

Who is calling me?

Is face-to-face fundraising regulated?

Want to leave us feedback?

We welcome feedback and we take complaints very seriously. If you would like to leave feedback, please get in touch by emailing us on supporter@hearingdogs.org.uk or call us on 01844 348 109. If you would like to raise a complaint, please include the following details to help us with your complaint:

Date and time of incident
Your contact information (name, address & email)
Details of the incident
Fundraisers name and ID, if possible

We monitor the behaviour and performance of our fundraisers closely. It is essential that we ensure that they are representing Hearing Dogs for Deaf People professionally and are adhering to Fundraising Regulator’s code of conduct and fundraising rulebooks. Each complaint is handled on an individual basis with actions taken to prevent it from happening again.

If you’d like more information on how we use your personal details, please read our privacy policy.

If you have a Sponsor a Puppy question, check out our FAQs.