FAQs

Any project we support must have the very highest levels of programme quality, safety, accountability, and stability.

We temporarily paused fundraising on Orphan Kind whilst we reviewed our partnership arrangements, and having identified new partners who meet the very highest standards of safeguarding and governance this has now been reinstated. 

This step was taken in line with our ongoing commitment to the quality and effectiveness of all our overseas work, and we appreciate the understanding and support of all our stakeholders towards maintaining these high standards.

You can make a massive difference to an orphan’s life with a 50p-a-day sponsorship through OrphanKind. Your regular donation is incredibly valuable in helping to transform a life and give a child hope for the future. Your support helps not only your sponsored child but also the other children on the programme, it will create positive changes for the child and their community.

You can select in which country you would like to sponsor a child and whether you would like to sponsor a boy or a girl. If you set up a sponsorship online, simply select the country from the options and write in the comments box if you have a preference for sponsoring a boy or girl. If you set up your sponsorship by post or phone, simply tell us your preference. We will do our best to meet your requests. If you do not specify, we will select an orphan where we feel the sponsorship is most needed.

The orphans benefit in ways that may differ according to their specific needs and their project. Overall, the sponsorships pay for school fees, uniform, school books, stationery, and school meals. Each child receives an education, nutritious meals and healthcare.

Our project-based sponsorship scheme ensures that all the needs of our orphans are met by bringing together the support of several sponsors. This means that the donor community can share the collective reward of giving orphans quality care. We aim to give all needy orphans every opportunity afforded to more fortunate children within their society. Quality education is an integral part of all of our orphan sponsorships – ensuring that your sponsored child has the chance to learn will ultimate help to build a future free from poverty.

You will receive a welcome pack which includes a profile of your sponsored child, and information about their background and their country of residence. During the year, you will then receive a feedback report on your sponsored child’s progress. The report will also include a recent photograph, a brief message from and a drawing from your child (depending on their age and writing ability).

Penny Appeal are committed to protecting children from harm and abuse. We recognise and take seriously our responsibility to provide an environment which promotes the safety of the child at all times.
The children that are cared for in our sponsorship programmes are highly vulnerable and therefore we do not feel that it is appropriate for individuals to visit the children they sponsor. Such short-term visits can cause harm to a child’s development and emotional wellbeing and cause attachment problems; visits can also confuse children.
Penny Appeal also cannot supervise individual visits and many of the partners we work with on sponsorship programmes would likewise not able to accommodate the administrative and logistical impacts of accompanying sponsors on visits.

Therefore, to ensure Penny Appeal is meeting our commitments to the protection and wellbeing of both the children we work with, and you as a visitor, individual visits to children are not allowed.

Yes, it is possible to write to your orphan. It is everyone’s responsibility here at Penny Appeal to promote the welfare of all children and young people, and to keep them safe. To ensure we are meeting these standards, we are committed to practice in a way that protects them. We have a responsibility to provide an environment which promotes the safety of the child at all times.

It is essential therefore that sponsors maintain appropriate boundaries in their contacts with the children and young people they sponsor. Communications that give the impression of being intimate, overly familiar and include open expressions of affection, whether intended or not, are therefore not permitted in any communication between sponsor and child. To help with constructing an appropriate letter to the child you sponsor please have a look at the following tips.

• Show genuine interest. Respectfully ask about your sponsored child’s family, friends, daily life, favourite activities and goals for the future.
• Share something about yourself. A great way to build a bond is by sharing interesting details about your own life and interests. Children enjoy hearing about your friends and family, what sports you like and the foods you eat. Find common ground by emphasizing shared interests and experiences with your sponsored child
• Encourage your child. Words of encouragement go a long way. Many children don’t have a supportive, positive voice in their lives. Celebrate your sponsored child’s achievements and offer praise for their skills and talents. Root for his or her dreams. • Write simply and clearly. Use language that’s free of slang or complicated ideas that may be difficult to translate or that your sponsored child may not understand. Also remember, your child may still be learning to read.
• Learn about their culture. Ask about traditions, holidays and special occasions in your sponsored child’s country. Share details about your own traditions.
• Less is more. Avoid possible confusion by limiting the topics and questions in your letters (two or three is good), and don’t expect your sponsored child to always address every comment or question. We recommend limiting the number of letters you send to three or four a year.
• Avoid making big promises. To avoid any disappointment, it is best not to promise things that in reality may be difficult to deliver
• Be sensitive and appropriate. Keep in mind that your sponsored child is likely living without many things many of us take for granted, so try not to focus on material items. Try not to write about politics or culturally sensitive subjects, and avoid writing about your personal problems where possible
• Do not use suggestive language and avoid topics and terms that can be interpreted in these ways such as talking about ‘Love’ which is overly intimate. Avoid being too familiar and using open expressions of affection. This ensures that the child, their parents/guardian or anyone else reading the letter such as translators or Penny Appeal staff cannot misconstrue your intentions.
• Don’t share last names or contact information.

In order to maintain the orphaned child’s privacy, we will not pass on to you the detailed report about the child’s background, address or other contact details.

If you wish to write to your orphan, email it to [email protected].

We often receive requests from our donors wanting to send gifts or cash to their sponsored child. This is something we do not generally accommodate because of the associated costs with delivering the item and also because we are mindful of all of the children that we look after. Our sponsored orphans often reside in homes or villages where there are many other poor children and orphans. For us to only deliver gifts or cash to only a select number of orphans could make other children feel deprived, disappointed and jealous. For this reason, we encourage you to donate to the Orphan Fund for the orphan children in the region or institution. We will then use this amount to ensure they all receive gifts at special times of the year such as Eid.

There is no minimum period - you can sponsor for as long as you are able – but think how rewarding it will be to support your child through many years of continuing care and education.

Pleasget in touch with us before cancelling your monthly payment, so that you can still help us provide life-saving aid. It also helps if you tell us first so that we can update our records and cancel the sponsorship. If you are unable to sponsor a child for £15 a month, there is another way you can help!

Donations of any amount can also be made to our Orphan Fund and further support the project, and the children in general.

We only use secure systems with banking standard safety features to make sure that your payment and financial data cannot be compromised. All online payments are securely processed no financial data is retained on our servers.

It really helps us if you can Gift Aid your sponsorship or donation – it increases the value of your donation by 25%.If you are a UK taxpayer, selecting to 'Gift Aid' your donation (either by checking the box online or ticking the box on a paper donation form) will make it worth more to us at no extra cost to you.
 
In order for Penny Appeal to reclaim the tax you have paid on your donations, you must have paid income or capital gains tax (in the UK) equal to the tax that will be claimed by all the charities that you donate to (currently 25p for every £1 you give) in the same tax year. 

The tax reclaimed will be used to help fund the administration costs of the charity so more of your actual donation can go directly to those in need. 

Gift Aid can be added to your donation if you are donating your own money. We regret that Gift Aid cannot be reclaimed if you are paying donations you collected from others, even if everyone was a UK taxpayer. Neither can it be reclaimed on donations made by companies. Other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. Gift Aid cannot be claimed on payments for any ticketed events.

Please notify us if you are no longer eligible, wish to cancel this declaration, change your name or home address or if you no longer pay sufficient tax on your income and/or capital gains. 

By ticking the box you agree that you are eligible to claim Gift Aid as explained above and that we can treat this donation, any donations made in the last 4 years and future donations as Gift Aid and that you understand that if you pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all your donations in that tax year it is your responsibility to pay any difference.

Occasionally, circumstances may lead to a sponsored child leaving the programme. This could stem from opportunities such as relocating to live with relatives in another region or pursuing education in a school not affiliated with Penny Appeal. In such an instance, your donations will continue to serve the broader orphan community, ensuring sustained assistance for those in need. Your sponsorship would then be transitioned to another child within the programme, of whom you will receive further updates while perpetuating the cycle of compassion and care. You will be informed of this change; it is then up to you to decide if you’d like to continue with the sponsorship or cancel it.

We always do our best to meet your requests! Penny Appeal will endeavour to use your gift as requested, wherever possible. If for any reason we cannot use your donation as you have indicated, we will use it to fund similar projects in other countries or other projects in the relevant country or where it’s most needed. Penny Appeal’s strategic overview and on the ground experience means it is in the best position to decide how to meet need as it arises.