The Oxfam UK Trailwalker 2012 is just around the corner, for those that want to take part in one of the most grueling challenges imaginable! This epic experience will see teams of 4 travel 100km in 30 hours, do you have the mental fortitude and physical stamina to take part in this awesome charity event?

Last year’s participants raised over £1.5million for the Oxfam charity, which is quite a feat before taking into consideration the task in hand! Originally started by the Queens Gurkha Regiment 30 years ago, this was once used as a training exercise to test soldiers’ stamina and ability to work within a team.

The Trailwalker Challenge first kicked off in 1981, is now held in 11 countries across the globe, and has so far raised an astounding £45million to help Oxfam overcome poverty. If you would like to take part, simply click on the link below to order a brochure today to find out more information on this once in a lifetime charity experience.

> > Click here for more Trailwalker 2012 information

Help Oxfam UK with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Oxfam Unwrapped, where you can purchase virtual charity presents which make ideal and unusual gift for a loved one.

From as little as £6 you could provide 100 school dinners for children in Brazil, or for £95 you can purchase a camel for a village in the Sudan! A charity gift is a great way to put something back into the world whilst also giving your friends and family a real conversation starter.

> > Click here purchase a gift from Oxfam Unwrapped

View other top charity gifts

If you’re sat looking a pile of unwanted Christmas gifts this new year, why not donate them to an Oxfam charity shop and help raise much needed funds this 2012? I think we all get a few things that we don’t actually want/like, I know I’ve got a scarf that’s never going to be worn, so why not make the most of these brand new items and donate them to charity.

Charity shops are always running a little low on stock after the post Christmas blitz, so why not do your bit, whilst tidying the house, and raise funds to help Oxfam’s amazing work fighting poverty across the globe. Items that would be of great use to the charity include -

• Clothes
• Books
• Homeware
• CDs & DVDs
• Games

The new year is the perfect time to have a clear out at home, so why not be part of something amazing by taking your unwanted items to an Oxfam UK store. Simply click on the link below to find your nearest shop and help raise funds to keep Oxfam’s life changing projects worldwide ongoing…

remember, one man’s rubbish, is another man’s treasure.

> > Click here to find your local Oxfam store

Help Oxfam UK with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Oxfam Unwrapped, where you can purchase virtual charity presents which make ideal and unusual gift for a loved one.

From as little as £6 you could provide 100 school dinners for children in Brazil, or for £95 you can purchase a camel for a village in the Sudan! A charity gift is a great way to put something back into the world whilst also giving your friends and family a real conversation starter.

> > Click here purchase a gift from Oxfam Unwrapped

View other top charity gifts

Oxfam UK are asking you to come together on Thursday 8th March 2012 to celebrate International Woman’s Day. First started in the early 1900′s, the annual day of celebration was first started in Russia to mark the changing roles of females in society.

Why not register this year and help raise much needed funds for Oxfam UK by taking part in Oxfam’s International Women’s Day celebration? Get the girls together and help women in the world’s poorest countries to build a better future for themselves and their families by holding a -

• Dinner party
• Clothes Swap Event
• Pampering Evening
• Cake Sale

Of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty across the globe, more than two thirds of them are women. With blinkered attitudes towards females denying them basic rights, whole communities are falling further into poverty and it needs to be stopped before it’s too late.

Thousands of people will be hosting events for Oxfam on International Women’s Day, so why not become one of them and know that the money you raise will change the lives of women around the world. Simply click on the link below to register for a fundraising pack that is full of helpful hints and tips on how to make your event is a success. Whatever you raise, the money makes a huge difference to the women who need it most.

> > Click to register for Oxfam fundraising pack

Help Oxfam UK with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Oxfam Unwrapped, where you can purchase virtual charity presents which make ideal and unusual gift for a loved one.

From as little as £6 you could provide 100 school dinners for children in Brazil, or for £95 you can purchase a camel for a village in the Sudan! A charity gift is a great way to put something back into the world whilst also giving your friends and family a real conversation starter.

> > Click here purchase a gift from Oxfam Unwrapped

View other top charity gifts

The British Red Cross has launched an innovative new mobile app that will give smartphone users helpful advice in an emergency. The app will be available for Apple, Android and Blackberry, and will feature simple advice on everyday first aid scenarios, as well as tips on how to prepare for emergencies. Completely free of charge, the app features videos, interactive quizzes and step-by-step advice in an emergency, and you never know, it could saves someone’s life.

British Red Cross head of first aid education, Joe Mulligan, said -

It’s vital that everybody knows basic first aid skills to help themselves and the people around them, and this app is a great way to reach people who may never go to a class. By harnessing mobile technology, with this app anyone can have life-saving skills at their fingertips. We believe that having basic first aid skills helps keep families and communities safer. The Red Cross encourages everybody to take the responsibility to learn first aid before an emergency strikes. This app makes our knowledge and experience in first aid readily accessible to smartphone users who can not only access it instantly when they need it, but also allows them to learn first aid at a time that suits them.

The current version of the app contains excellent advice for Christmas, and also features winter weather tips on as the cold season begins to take a grip on the country. If you would like to download it, simply click on the link below to find it on iTunes AppStore, Android Market or Blackberry Appworld. You never know, it could come in use this festive season.

> > Click here to download free app

Oxfam UK is asking for your help and support the Big Give appeal on Monday 5th December 2011, where your donation will be DOUBLED! Last year saw a massive 15,000 donations get doubled, raising an astounding £9.3million in total.

You donations will help children like Fatima, who you will see in the video below needs donations to help her to attend school to build for a better life.

With your donations being doubled, Fatimata’s chances of going to school for the first time will also be doubled. Your donations will also go towards helping -

• repair classrooms
• training teachers
• building school toilets
• build wells closer to schools

So by making a donation from 5th December 2011, Big Give will match your charity gift donation pound for pound as part of their Christmas Challenge. Going to school may seem like a right to the likes of ourselves, but to children like Fatimata, it’s a life changing opportunity.

Simply click on the link below to make a donation to support the Big Give Christmas Challenge, and get the chance to provide double the aid for children who need it the most.

> > Click here to make a donation

Help Oxfam UK with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Oxfam Unwrapped, where you can purchase virtual charity presents which make ideal and unusual gift for a loved one.

From as little as £6 you could provide 100 school dinners for children in Brazil, or for £95 you can purchase a camel for a village in the Sudan! A charity gift is a great way to put something back into the world whilst also giving your friends and family a real conversation starter.

> > Click here purchase a gift from Oxfam Unwrapped

View other top charity gifts

The Centrepoint charity are pleased to announce that Jamie Cullum will be performing for just 100 lucky people at the Chappell of Bond Street in London on Tuesday 1st December 2011. The gig, to commemorate the Chappell’s 200th anniversary, will be compered on the night by DJ Mark Goodier and will see an audience of just 100 enjoy Jamie’s mix of classic and eclectic pop jazz.

Drinks and canapés will be served all night, with all money raised going directly to help Centrepoint continue their outstanding work in helping young homeless people back onto their feet.

Tickets are £100 each, so to be in with a chance of securing one, simply email the Centrepoint events at r.eldridge@centrepoint.org to see if you are going to be one of the fortunate 100 guests at this special one of gig. Good luck!

Help Support Centrepoint with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Centrepoint More than a Gift. Virtual presents start at just £7 and there is a great selection to choose from. Each charity gift comes with -

• A personalised gift card or e-card
• An explanation into how the gift will be used
• The satisfaction of helping those in need

These thoughtful charity gifts would make an ideal present for a loved one, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

> > Click here to make a Centrepoint More Than a Gift donation

The British Red Cross will be hosted a ‘Jail and Bail’ event on Thursday 1st December 2011 to help raise funds for the charity. This will give people the opportunity to be locked up with one of their heroes, and this one has particular appeal to myself. As a massive fan of the band The Smiths, you can now have a chance to be locked up with ex-drummer Mike Joyce for a few hours at Manchester’s Northern Quarter.

Taking place at the Manchester Police Museum, guests will be booked in by a police sergeant upon arrival, then fingerprinted and crimes noted. They will then be taken into an original 1895 courtroom and put on trial, and if they are found guilty they will be sent down to the police cells where Mike will be among the inmates. Guests will be charged with a variety of fun crimes, such as ‘crimes against fashion’ and ‘crimes on the golf course’. Upon their release, the convicted will be treated to a drinks reception, not such tough justice!

Mike said -

The event sounds like a bit of fun and it’s all for a good cause so I’m very happy to help. I’m not quite sure what I’m going to be put on trial for yet but I’m sure my mates will have a few suggestions. I hope that we’ll get a good turn out and raise lots of money for the British Red Cross.

This is the second time Mike has helped out the British Red Cross this year alone, having already auctioned some rare items included a limited edition photograph and a signed snareskin for the charities Japan appeal.

Senior community fundraiser, Toni Kennedy said -

We can’t thank Mike enough for agreeing to support our event. It promises to be a really fun event and hopefully we’ll raise thousands of pounds for our work both here in the UK as well as overseas.

Simply click on the link below to sign up to take part in this unusual charity event, I know I certainly will be. The chance to meet a member of the world’s greatest ever band is a mouth watering prospect (you can keep your Stones and Beatles!)

> > Click here to sign up today

Help Support the British Red Cross with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with a British Red Cross charity gift. Presents start at just £25, and for a limited time you will also receive a beautifully designed canvas shopping bag. These thoughtful charity gifts would make an ideal present for a loved one…

it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

> > Click here to make a British Red Cross donation

Oxfam UK is asking for your continued support for their GROW campaign, which is now helping people in Uganda that have been forced from their homes to make way for a timber plantation. Up to 22,500 people have been displaced, many without enough food or money to send their children to school.

Help support the cause by clicking on the link below and adding your voice to thousands of others who want justice for the displaced people of Uganda. A letter will be sent to the chairman of the New Forests Company, Robert Devereux, asking for a full investigation into reports of intimidation and harassment.

Make a stand today and support the people of Uganda.

> > Click here to make your voice heard

Help Oxfam UK with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with Oxfam Unwrapped, where you can purchase virtual charity presents which make ideal and unusual gift for a loved one.

From as little as £6 you could provide 100 school dinners for children in Brazil, or for £95 you can purchase a camel for a village in the Sudan! A charity gift is a great way to put something back into the world whilst also giving your friends and family a real conversation starter.

> > Click here purchase a gift from Oxfam Unwrapped

View other top charity gifts

British Red Cross staff are pleased to announce that their first ever solely vintage shop in Shrewsbury has turned record profits in it’s first week! As reported here, the newly refurbished shop on in Mardol Street has seen an amazing 114% increase in profit compared to this time last year, a truly staggering improvement! The retro Tudor building is now seeing a far steadier stream of customers, with some popping in every day to see what’s new. The shop itself has had a complete facelift that is obviously pleasing the punters eye.

Red Cross regional fundraising manager, Hannah Simpson said -

We have been overwhelmed by the response and are delighted that it has been such a success. I think people love our stock because we offer genuine one-off pieces at a reasonable price so they can achieve a really fashionable look while also giving to a worthwhile cause!

There’s not just vintage and retro clothing on offer either, but also a great selection of accessories and home ware available too, some of which has caught the eye of some of the UK’s top fashion bloggers.

Beauty for all Budgets blogger, Leanne Bilsby, said -

I wish all of Shrewsbury’s local residents and fashion enthusiasts the best of luck in rifling through the menagerie of vintage wonder, because if I ever happen to “accidentally” get on a train and not get off again until it stops in Shrewsbury then I will be buying the lot.

The success of this first shop has seen plans for other vintage Red Cross stores planned for the UK in 2012, which is great news if Shrewsbury is a bit of a trek. Congratulations to the British Red Cross team on this amazing increase in profit, long may it continue.

Help Support the British Red Cross with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with a British Red Cross charity gift. Presents start at just £25, and for a limited time you will also receive a beautifully designed canvas shopping bag. These thoughtful charity gifts would make an ideal present for a loved one…

it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

> > Click here to make a British Red Cross donation

The British Red Cross are pleased to announce the opening of their first ever vintage shop in Shrewsbury on Wednesday 19th October 2011. The store was officially opened by Mary Steadman and Ann Allport, local ladies who have been volunteering for the Red Cross for an amazing 25 years.

Staff and volunteers have been working against the clock to open the store on time. The Tudor building on Mardol Street in Shrewsbury is now a vintage shoppers’ playground, with a great selection of stylish bargains available. There was even a celebratory tea party with cakes and cucumber sandwiches for customers and staff alike.

New business manager at the British Red Cross, Diana Goss, said -

This shop is a unique opportunity for us to celebrate our history and move it forward. Shrewsbury seemed the obvious choice for us to open our very first vintage shop as there is a really strong market for vintage clothing here. The huge range of clothing available in this shop means that there really is something for everyone.

The shop itself is open from Monday to Saturday between 9am and 5pm, and the address is -

• British Red Cross vintage shop
• 14 Mardol Street
• Shrewsbury
• Shropshire
• SY1 1PY
• Tel: 01743 248 757

So if you’re in the area, why not pop in for a nose at the bargains and help raise much needed funds to assist the British Red Cross in their continued work across the globe.

Help Support the British Red Cross with a Charity Gift

You can help raise funds with a British Red Cross charity gift. Presents start at just £25, and for a limited time you will also receive a beautifully designed canvas shopping bag. These thoughtful charity gifts would make an ideal present for a loved one…

it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

> > Click here to make a British Red Cross donation