Fundraising

WILSAR is a non-profit making organisation. We do not get funding from the government or local authority and we do not charge anyone for the services we provide, so we rely on our own fundraising, along with donations and sponsorship from the public and from companies.

• All our members are unpaid volunteers. We do not have any paid employees.
• Our volunteers pay for most of their own equipment, clothing and expenses.
• Lowland Search and Rescue teams do not attract the same high profile as some Mountain Rescue teams and as such do not easily attract sponsorship from large national or multi-national companies.

Fundraising activities

Our members work hard to raise funds for the team. As well as spending time on street collections and other direct means of collecting cash from generous members of the public, we also organise activities and involve ourselves in other people's fundraising. Examples of these are

• the very successful "WILSAR Ladies Driving Challenge" events, held in 2002 and 2003. The participants have had great fun in a variety of vehicles whilst raising significant amounts of money for the team.
• Ridgeway Overnight walk. A sponsored walk of about 20 miles, organised by the Swindon Thamesdown Rotary Club. In 2003, 12 of our members took part, raising money to partly fund the teams Incident Control Vehicle. Other members provided a support role to assist all taking part. The picture at the top of the page shows the team before the event.
• Keep an eye on our News page for details of any forthcoming fundraising events.

How you can help WILSAR

Here are some ways you may be able to support us.

• Make a donation. You can make a donation to WILSAR by sending us a cheque or postal order (payable to "Wiltshire Search and Rescue"). Please contact us for details. If you make a donation we will not use your details to send you unsolicited emails or junk-mail.
• Payroll giving. Ask your employer if they support payroll giving. This is a scheme that allows employees to make donations on a regular basis straight from the employer's payroll before tax is deducted. See the Inland Revenue web site for more information.
• Give your time. If you are interested in becoming an operational member involved in search and rescue, or would like to help with activities such as fund-raising, administration or operational support, please contact us for more information.

If you would like more information about any of these options, or would like to discuss other ideas for supporting our work, please feel free to contact us.

How Companies and Other Organisations can Help WILSAR

If you represent a commercial company or other organisation, here are some ways that you may be able to help:

• Financial donation. If you would like to make a one-off donation to WILSAR, you can do so by sending the payment to us directly (payable to "Wiltshire Search and Rescue"). Please contact us page for details.
• Equipment or service donation. If your company produces or sells equipment, or provides a service that may be of use to us, you may like to make a donation in kind.
• Ongoing sponsorship. We would like to develop relationships with organisations that are able to provide money, equipment or services to us on a regular basis. Please contact us directly if you would like to offer ongoing support.
• Help your staff to help us. You could encourage your staff to support WILSAR by:
• • Running fundraising events.
  • Supporting payroll giving (see the Inland Revenue for more information).

Please contact us if:

• you would like more information about any of these options, or
• you would like to discuss other ideas for supporting our work, or
• you would like someone from WILSAR to come and give a presentation at your organisation.

We look forward to working with you.