If you don't ask...

one of my biggest roles as co-ordinator of the Parkstone Kids Club in Hull is to raise funds. Over the past five years I have brought in over 22,000 -most of it in my spare time. But I don't expect everything to be donated and, of course, as a club we often also organise fundraising events. Most of our parents know me by now and I get comments like, 'You might as well have my purse,' or 'It's a good job I have big pockets!'

When searching for donations my motto is, 'If you don't ask you don't get'

-and playworkers should realise that there are lots of people out there who will support their club. When I first started asking for donations I found it a bit nerve racking. 'How do I approach people or companies?' I thought. 'How do I fill in application forms when sometimes I don't even understand what the questions mean?' After all, I thought, I am a playworker not a financial whiz. But I am now getting the hang of it, and really, you don't need fancy talk, just good old fashioned words and a bit of a cheek. Now I find that everywhere I go I look for potential sources of support for the club - the next task is to raise some mega funds for an extension so that we can increase the number of places that we offer from 35.