Run 4 Wales Team Up With UK’s Biggest Event Organisers To Create 2.6 Challenge
Thousands of fundraising events across the UK have been cancelled due to Covid-19 with a devastating impact on charity income that means many charities are facing closure.
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) CEO Karl Wilding estimates that the UK charity sector will lose £4 billion in income as a result of the pandemic.
In response, Run 4 Wales and other mass-participation events organisers across the country have come together to create a new campaign to raise vital funds to help save the UK’s charities.
The campaign, The 2.6 Challenge, will launch on Sunday 26 April – what should have been the date of the 40th edition of the London Marathon, the world’s biggest one day annual fundraising event, which raised £66.4 million for charities in 2019.
From Sunday 26 April, the public is asked to dream up an activity based around the numbers 2.6 or 26 and fundraise or donate to Save the UK’s Charities via twopointsixchallenge.co.uk The 2.6 Challenge is open to anyone of any age – the only requirement is that the activity must follow the Government guidelines on exercise and social distancing.
“The 2.6 Challenge can be anything that works for you,” says Nick Rusling, Co-Chair of the Mass Participation Sports Organisers group (MSO) and CEO of Human Race. “You can run or walk 2.6 miles, 2.6km or for 26 minutes. You could do the same in your home or garden, go up and down the stairs 26 times, juggle for 2.6 minutes, do a 26 minute exercise class or get 26 people on a video call and do a 26 minute workout – anything you like. We want people to get active, have fun and raise money to help Save the UK’s Charities by giving money or raising funds for the charity close to your heart.”
“For many of the UK’s charities, the day of the London Marathon is the biggest fundraising day of the year,” said Hugh Brasher, Co-Chair of MSO and Event Director of London Marathon Events. “One of the founding pillars of the London Marathon was ‘to show how the family of mankind can be united’. We hope that The 2.6 Challenge, which starts on the day our 40th Race should have taken place, will embody that spirit and inspire people, families and communities to fundraise for their chosen charity to help Save the UK’s Charities. Right now, our vulnerable members of society need the help of charities more than ever before. We are asking everyone to create a 2.6 Challenge of their own and raise funds or pledge a donation.”
“In recent weeks, we have seen the UK unite in support of our frontline workers like never before,” said Run 4 Wales Charity Director, Deborah Powell. “On Sunday 26th April, we want the country to come together again, this time to help UK charities recover lost fundraising opportunities as a result of disruptions to the major events calendar caused by COVID-19. If fundraising dries-up during this lockdown period, many of our most valued charities may not survive. We’re asking individuals, families and communities to join us with their own 2.6 challenge, raising money for their efforts – or by simply donating to the cause. It’s a chance for all of us to help ensure the most vulnerable members of our society continue to have somewhere to turn during this crisis.”
Run 4 Wales have teamed up with other mass-participation events organisers behind The 2.6 Challenge, including: Human Race, parkrun, The Great Run Company, Grounded Events, London Landmarks, Virgin Sport, Limelight Sports, Threshold Sports, Running High and London Marathon Events. The design and website has been created by Studio Republic and the social media campaign by LiveWire Sport. Both agencies are working pro bono.
The campaign is supported by the Charities Aid Foundation, the Institute of Fundraising, the Small Charities Coalition, the Office for Civil Society, Sport England, Sport Wales, Let’s Do This, Virgin Money Giving and JustGiving.
For more information on The 2.6 Challenge, visit twopointsixchallenge.co.uk
