71. Creating a record-breaking Giving Day, with Mel Bushell

In schools and higher education development we are starting to see more fundraising through Giving Days. There are clear benefits to creating a focal point for donations to a particular need, at one moment in time, and to do so digitally. To help fundraisers who are weighing up the idea of organising a Giving Day, I’m excited to share my recent interview with Mel Bushell, Director of Development at the Portsmouth Grammar School (PGS). In March 2021, PGS organised what was at the time the most successful giving day ever achieved by a UK school, raising £280,000 to pay for bursaries. It included match funding from a major donor, and it was a huge team effort. Indeed, the 653 donations were from a broad range of supporters, and more than half of them gave for the first time. Here, Mel shares how they did it, her advice and reflects on what she learned. If you’d like to share this episode because you think it will help other schools, universities and charities – THANK YOU! - we are both on Linked In and on twitter Mel is @MelanieBowran and I am @woods_rob.