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Donations

The more donations you get, the more students you can help. Asking for money can be difficult, especially in small communities and when times are tough.

This page will give you an overview of some of the facts around donations, such as how tax deductibility works, and then will delve into asking for donations, including some hints, tips and tricks on how to ask people for money.  The way you can approach donors, and the way you thank them when they do donate can make all the difference. The more knowledge you have, and the more passionate you are about CEF, the easier the ask will be!

Before we deep dive, let’s start with this summary.

What is DGR status?

The Australian Business register defines a deductible gift recipient (DGR) is an entity or fund that can receive tax deductible gifts. There are two types of DGR endorsement:

  • An entity that has DGR endorsement in its own right
  • An entity that is only a DGR in relation to a fund, authority or institution it operates. In this instance, only gifts to the fund, authority or institution are tax deductible

Country Education Foundation of Australia (CEF) is a DGR 1 organisation listed by name in the tax law by parliamentary amendment. BetterBoards explains DGR 1 status well:

“Organisations with DGR 1 status are called ‘doing DGRs’, in a simplified sense they are organisations that carry out charitable works and use tax-deductible donations to fund these activities.”

You can find our summary of when and how your donors can access a tax deductible Receipt.  For more information on DGR status and how it works check out the non-profit page on the ATO website or this page from the Funding Centre.

IMPORTANT FOR YOUR DONORS

Country Education Foundation of Australia (the national office) holds the DGR 1 status – not your local foundation – and this is because of the various and rigorous DGR eligibilty requirements set out by the government. So remember, if you donor requires a receipt for tax deductibility for their contribution, it needs to go through the national office bank account.

Country Education Foundation of Australia Ltd

Commonwealth Bank

BSB: 062 629

Account No: 1009 0818

Donor Communications

What to ask for and how...

  • Once-off donations – pretty simple, a donation that you receive once!
  • Regular giving – regular giving refers to donors who give on a regular basis, i.e. weekly, monthly or annually
  • Major donations – these are the BIG donations you receive, and what constitutes a major donation is a little different and based on your own donor base
  • Gifts in Wills (Bequests)  – monies left to you in a person’s will, these gifts are covered a little further down the page
  • Workplace giving – a lot of companies and businesses now expect their staff to give back to communities, often through contributions to charities. This can be financial giving through their workplace, or even volunteering with a local group just like yours
  • Matched funding – this is when you find a business who pledges to match any donations to you receive during a certain time period and usually up to a certain amount. For example, XXX business will match you donation dollar for dollar. The idea is “more bang for you buck” for both individual donors and businesses
  • Sponsorship/partnerships – these are a great way to work with other people in the community and offer great benefits for both partners. For more information on these, see the COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS page

Knowing how you are going to approach donors and what you are going to ask for is half the battle, and preparation makes the ask just that little bit easier.

The Funding Centre has plenty of great starter information and resources on how to approach donors for money.

Remember to say thank you!

Anyone who works in fundraising will tell you that how you say thank you to your donors is so, so important. Everyone will do this a little differently. You know your donors best, and that’s the great thing about CEF! Here are a few general tips to keep in mind:

  • Make it personal, if someone is giving you their hard-earned money, make a quick phone call or hand write a note
  • Get onto it quick, don’t let time pass between receiving the donation and the thank you
  • Give them an example of how their donation helped, like a great student story
  • Invite them to events so they can see the hard work you are doing, and the results you are achieving
  • Make them feel important, because they are!

Gifts in Wills

COMING SOON!