OnDemand: The Voluntary Sector Fundraising Conference 2026
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2026 Overview
The voluntary sector has faced a challenging few years, navigating a complex economic landscape alongside a rising demand for their services. Resilience and fundraising performance have been tested across the board, with both large and small charities needing to show remarkable adaptability to overcome ongoing financial pressures and uncertainty.
In January 2026 fundraising experts and charity leaders united at The Voluntary Sector Fundraising Conference and shared insights to strengthen fundraising capacity in difficult economic conditions, improve donor retention, and build meaningful partnerships with both communities and the private sector. Whether you’re navigating limited resources as a small charity or exploring innovation at scale, this is your opportunity to gain practical tools and actionable strategies to maximise your organisation’s impact.
Supporters Included
2026 Agenda
Chair’s Opening Remarks
Dr Haseeb Shabbir, Reader in Voluntary Sector Management, Centre for Charity Effectiveness, Bayes Business School
Keynote: Transforming the Fundraising Landscape across the UK
- Understand how to shift public and internal perceptions of fundraising to enhance its status and impact across the sector
- Learn about the latest standards, ethics, and guidance designed to drive excellent fundraising practices and maintain public trust
- Discover ways to create a culture within your donor community that inspires more people to give generously and sustainably
Katie Docherty, Chief Executive, Chartered Institute of Fundraising
Keynote: Fundraising Trends, Challenges and Opportunities
- Understand the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis on donor behaviour and charity operations
- Strategies to navigate to changing landscape and explore new fundraising opportunities
- Discuss how to adapt to trends in giving and how best to focus efforts in the current economic climate
Laura Yonish, Senior Manager, Charities Aid Foundation
Keynote: Developing a Diversified Fundraising Strategy
- Learn practical steps to develop a fundraising strategy that is both resilient and adaptable in response to the rapidly evolving funding landscape
- Explore how to integrate innovative fundraising methods alongside proven traditional approaches to maximise income
- Understand how to set clear goals, measure outcomes, and use insights to continuously improve your fundraising effectiveness
- Strategies for building a strong volunteer and staff network to support your fundraising strategy
Lindsay Tilston Jones, Head of Community, Shelter
Questions & Answers
Comfort Break
Keynote: Reimagining the Role of the Supporter
- Re-imagining supporters and volunteers in the context of changing expectations, lifestyles and values, particularly among younger generations
- Why this is not a crisis of generosity, but a design and leadership challenge for charities
- How traditional distinctions between “donor” and “volunteer” are breaking down, and what that means for engagement
- Practical reflections from Cats Protection on redesigning volunteering and supporter journeys around people rather than structures
- The leadership and governance choices required to attract, retain and grow the next generation of supporters and volunteers
John May OBE, Chief Executive, Cats Protection
Case Study: Effective Strategies for Fundraising as a Small Charity
- Outlining how to raise awareness and create a sense of community to enhance fundraising efforts despite limited resources
- Exploring practical approaches to tackling common cash flow and capacity challenges when implementing fundraising strategies
- Learning how to utilise the support available from networks, partnerships, and advisory panels to strengthen your fundraising capacity
- Understanding the value of collaboration and how working with other organisations can lead to shared success and increased impact
Sue Roughton, Co-founder & Volunteer, Purple Heart Wishes
Questions & Answers
Lunch Break
Keynote: Building Stronger Engagement for Legacy Giving
- Explore what is meant by Engagement and why it matters for legacy giving?
- Consider what’s more important for legacy growth: Brand health or legacy marketing activity?
- Understanding the importance of organisational alignment and integration
- Explore what engagement metrics may indicate interest in legacy giving and why this should inform, but never limit your legacy marketing activity
- The increasing importance of standing out
Alex McDowell, Director of Fundraising, The Duke of Edinburgh Award and Vice Chair, Remember a Charity
Case Study: How to ensure your face-to-face fundraising is compliant – the relationship between charities and agencies
- Learn how to manage outsourced fundraising responsibly to build ethical partnerships between charities and agencies
- Explore how charity leaders can take responsibility for ensuring adherence to best practices when outsourcing fundraising activities.
Russell Brown, Regulatory Projects Manager, The Fundraising Regulator
Questions & Answers
Comfort Break
Keynote: Applying for Unrestricted Grants: How to Write a Strong Application
- Understanding the misconceptions around fundraising
- How to allocate team time and resource effectively
- Importance and practicality of measuring impact
- The three/five big takeaways for best practice funding applications
Mary Rose Gunn, CEO, The Fore
Case Study: Are Your Eyes on Sudan?: Why the Public Don’t Care About Some Crises, and What We Can Do
- Understanding the factors that contribute to the public paying a lack of attention to an important issue including a lack of media attention and donor fatigue
- Outlining how to build understanding not just emotion when creating campaigns
- Strategies to convey the scale and urgency of crisis in a way that increases engagement
- Our Are Your Eyes on Sudan campaigns aims to drive public awareness and detailed understanding with events, advertising, a petition, cultural resources and more
Shazia Arshad, Head of Communications & Creative, Islamic Relief UK
Questions & Answers
Chair’s Closing Remarks
Dr Haseeb Shabbir, Reader in Voluntary Sector Management, Centre for Charity Effectiveness, Bayes Business School
Conference Close
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OnDemand
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2026 Speakers
Katie Docherty
Chief Executive
Chartered Institute of Fundraising
Haseeb Shabbir
Reader in Voluntary Sector Management
Centre for Charity Effectiveness, Bayes Business School
Laura Yonish
Senior Manager
Laura Yonish, Senior Manager, Charities Aid Foundation
Lindsay Tilston Jones
Head of Community
Shelter
Sue Roughton
Co-founder & Volunteer
Purple Heart Wishes
Russell Brown
Regulatory Projects Manager
The Fundraising Regulator
Testimonials
Some really informative sessions which I really enjoyed and will be beneficial to me in my role.
Great speakers, and relevant useful information on current trends in the sector.
The event was helpful and informative.
A very informative event, with a large variation of speakers.
