A person in red sunglasses and a green Macmillan top is high fiving another person. They appear to be on a path at an event.

8 ways to support Macmillan during the cost of living crisis

Blog
Published: 07 November 2023
During the cost of living crisis, you may be wondering how you can continue to support Macmillan. There are still many ways you can make a difference in the lives of people affected by cancer. 
A selfie of Kerstin. Kerstin has short, brown curly hair and brown eyes. She is wearing a black cardigan and a black and white top. She is looking at the camera and appears to be sitting on a train.

Kerstin Felton Digital Content Editor at Macmillan

1. Become a Macmillan volunteer

Over 10,000 active Macmillan volunteers donated 80,000 hours of their time to help people living with cancer.

Volunteering can make a difference in your own life and the lives of those affected by cancer. It is also a great way to meet new people, gain new skills and experience, and support people in your local community.

There are many different volunteering opportunities at Macmillan where you can give your time and experience to help others.

Our volunteering roles include:

Find out how volunteering can make a difference by reading stories from Macmillan volunteers.

2. Share your experience

Have you or someone close to you had a cancer experience? Sharing your story with Macmillan and others can make a difference.

Opportunities to share your experience include:

  • becoming a Cancer Voice to help influence Macmillan's work and improve cancer care now and in the future
  • sharing your story with the media to help to raise awareness both locally and nationally on important issues that affect people with cancer
  • joining our Online Community to connect with others going through similar experiences.
A dark green microphone on a light green background.

‘When we do the Cancer Voices and the inductions, people hear two or three stories from different people. We’re all different, so it shows that there's no standard person who's had cancer.

‘It’s quite good to give people that lived experience and to be able to tell them what it feels like to me, what went well with my treatment and what didn't work well.’ - Joe, a Macmillan Cancer Voice.

3. Give to recycling and reselling scheme

You can help raise money for Macmillan through recycling and disposing of unwanted possessions.

For example, you could sell items on eBay. These could be unwanted items or even things you’ve created or crafted for Macmillan. Sellers can donate a portion of sales to Macmillan and access reduced charity seller fees. Find out more by visiting the Macmillan Cancer Support charity page on eBay.

Use the Recycling for Good Causes scheme and you can turn your unwanted stuff into donations for Macmillan. The scheme is easy to use - simply request a recycling sack, fill it, and have it collected.

You could donate an unwanted car to the Give a Car scheme. The proceeds of selling (minus a 25-30% admin fee) go to Macmillan.

4. Host an online fundraiser for your birthday or other special occasion

It's easy to set up a fundraiser on Facebook or JustGiving for a special occasion. It could be for your birthday, anniversary or any important date for you. Then your loved ones can make a donation to Macmillan instead of giving presents or cards.

You could also do a unique challenge and ask for donations on Facebook or JustGiving. For instance, you could try a sponsored silence or walk 100 miles in a month.

Check out our fundraising ideas for more inspiration.

A dark green money collection tin on a light green background.

‘I saw on Facebook that my friend and daughter had done a challenge to put on a bikini in the snow to raise money. I thought it was really funny. Then someone challenged me to do it to raise money for Macmillan, so I thought 'Why not?'

‘My husband thought I was crazy, but I did it. I put it on Facebook and literally raised £500 within a matter of hours.’ - Julie, who fundraises for Macmillan.

5. Campaign with us

 

A group of people are standing in a queue on a bridge near the Parliament building in London. The person in front of the queue has short brown hair and is wearing a green jacket. Behind them are people looking at their phones, books and other objects.

Macmillan campaigns for real change to improve the lives of everyone living with or affected by cancer.

You can help us to continue this vital work by:

6. Host an event in your community

Bring together your loved ones and people in your community to raise funds for Macmillan.

This could be:

  • holding a community Iftar during Ramadan at a community venue or at your place of worship
  • a community tournament where teams come together to take part in an activity
  • planning a competition at work and get your colleagues involved
  • a pub quiz at your local where all participation funds go to Macmillan.
Community fundraising ideas
Two dark green teacups on a light green background.
'One of the things we did last year, which my team loved, was a 'Soak the Manager' event. We had all the managers stood outside and we let the team throw water at us. It was amazing and we raised £250 in a day because the team loved it so much.' - Tasmin, who works for M&S Foodhall in Shirley, Southampton 

7. Use your everyday purchases to donate to Macmillan

With the easyfundraising for Macmillan app your everyday online shopping can help Macmillan.

More than 7,000 brands will donate a percentage of your total when you buy from them via the easyfundraising for Macmillan app.

You can download the app from the App Store and Google Play.

8. Show your support and raise awareness on social media

Social media can be a powerful tool to raise awareness of cancer and of Macmillan.

Macmillan is on the following social media channels:

By following Macmillan and sharing, commenting and liking our posts you can help spread awareness of the support and information we offer.

You can also use your own platforms to share your experiences and stories to help raise awareness of cancer.

'I shared information about my mastectomy. I was quite open about it and had encouraging responses from people saying 'you're the only person who I've come across'. And that my content was really helpful.

'I didn't intend for it to be a charity at that point. I just used Instagram as my platform, but people started to reach out and offer to share their mastectomy images anonymously.' - Christen, who started the BRCAchat charity.

About the author

A selfie of Kerstin. Kerstin has short, brown curly hair and brown eyes. She is wearing a black cardigan and a black and white top. She is looking at the camera and appears to be sitting on a train.

Kerstin Felton

Kerstin is a Digital Content Editor at Macmillan. She has a background in creating digital content for the NHS, other health charities, and research organisations. 

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