Covid19 - Advice for Collection Box Hosts

Following advice from the government regarding working from home, we have made the decision to suspend the collection and servicing of our purple collection boxes. This is a decision we have not taken lightly. Our purple collection tins play a crucial role in funding childhood cancer research, bringing in over £60,000 per year in small change alone. However, during this time it is important that above all else, we are able to put the safety of our staff and supporters first.

We would therefore like to take this time to answer some of the most popular questions we have received from our supporters so far. As always, if you should need further guidance please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Why haven’t you rung or emailed us? 
As the government advice changes in a bid to control the outbreak of Covid19, Kidscan has been busy to ensure we are able to react accordingly. We have made attempts to contact supporters directly, however for many of our supporters who host collection boxes, we do not hold email addresses or phone numbers, as it is not information we would ordinarily need. If you would like to be contacted directly or have any queries we encourage you to contact us. 

I keep ringing the landline number on the collection tin but can’t get through!
After the government advised people to work from home, we took the decision to close the Kidscan office, to keep both our staff and volunteers safe. We have diverted our landline to voicemail which we will endeavour to check, however it may take a little longer than usual to get back to you.

If you need to contact Kidscan about a collection box you can also email info@kidscan.org.uk or alternatively you can contact our fundraising officer Ian directly on  07508 964 297 during office hours. 

Please ensure you include: the name of your business, the address as it is on the back of the box, a contact email or number and then the details about why you have contacted Kidscan. 

My box is really, really, full what do I do? 
If the box is full to bursting please take it off display and put it somewhere safe, such as in a locked office or safe. Unfortunately as we are now working from home, we may not be able to send you a new tin in the post as we usually would, or come out to visit you. We will resume collecting tins as soon as government advice allows us to.

When will you be coming to see us next?
Unfortunately, that depends on how long the Covid-19 outbreak lasts and that is not yet known. Once we do know we will let you know here how far behind we are in our collections, and when your next collection will be. 

I need to close my business, what should I do with the box?

We understand that under the current circumstances, many businesses are deciding to temporarily close. If this is the case we ask that you take your Kidscan box from display and keep it somewhere safe.

If your business is going to close, or amend opening times, please get in touch and let us know. We will endeavour to work with you to find a solution for your collection box.

Could I empty the box and pay it in for you?
Whilst this would be a great help, we don’t want you to place yourself at any unnecessary risk, there may be ways that you can help us but please contact us first so we can work out what is best together. 

Is there anything else I can do to help?
There are hundreds of ways to help during this period of time. such as:

• Browsing through our website to learn more about Kidscan, how childhood cancer is different and the research we do
• Recommend us to other businesses in your area, so that when things get back to normal, we can keep on funding vital research
• Fundraising from home, using our top 5 fundraising from home ideas

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our supporters who host our purple collection tins, and we look forward to continue working with you to fund childhood cancer research.