The Great AMBS Fundraiser 2026
After a successful inaugural year in 2025, we’re really pleased to announce that The Great AMBS Fundraiser will be returning for 2026!
Exclusively for first and second year undergraduate AMBS students, this project enables you to put your entrepreneurial prowess into practice to benefit a charitable cause.
In teams, you will be assigned a charity to represent, work on a fundraising proposal based upon the brief your charity has provided, and put your ideas into practice by planning, organising and executing your own fundraising scheme. The team who devises and runs the most effective campaign and raises the most money will be crowned the winners of The Great AMBS Fundraiser.
The project will help you develop your skills in presenting project briefs, logistical planning, public relations and brand management, plus many more. As you will be volunteering your time, participating in the project will also count towards the Stellify Award.
Take a look at a more detailed breakdown of the stages of the initiative.
You’ll need to apply to be part of the project. Part of the application form will ask you what has motivated you to participate, as well as the kinds of skills and experiences you can bring to a team. We are also keen to find out what you want to gain from the experience.
If you invited to be part of the project, you should attend the mandatory induction session run by the Volunteering Team and AMBS IAG Team (Wednesday, 18 February at 2pm). During this session, you will receive an overview of the process of the scheme, plus a fundraising masterclass to provide you with the best tips to raise the most money possible.
You will meet your team in this session too, giving you a chance to get to know each other. Most importantly, you will be given the charity brief that you will be working on for the rest of the project.
After you’ve been given your brief at the induction session, you will have a fortnight to work on creating a fundraising proposal for your chosen charity. You will have to present this proposal to a panel in the form of a presentation. The presentations will be held on Wednesday, 4 March.
After your presentation, the panel will come to a decision of whether they approve of your proposal becoming a reality. A member of either the IAG Team or the Volunteering will meet with your group after the presentations to officially approve your proposal, subject to any alterations which we see as necessary.
Finally, once your proposal has been approved, it’s over to you and your team to plan, organise, and execute your fundraising plan to raise as much money for your chosen charity as possible.
The Volunteering Team and IAG Team will be on contactable to help with things like booking spaces around campus, extra promotion, or just general advice.
The charities
As part of your application, we’ll ask you to rank your preferences of the different charities we have approached to be part of the project. Here are some more details about each one, the kind of work that they do, as well as what they hope to gain from working with AMBS students on the project.
- LGBT Foundation: a health and wellbeing charity that supports LGBTQ+ individuals through inclusive health and wellbeing services, including; a helpline, talking therapies, sexual health support, policy and advocacy, and education and awareness campaigning. They wish to increase their numbers of engaged supporters, who can help LGBT Foundation in their goal of celebrating LGBTQ+ communities by joining mailing lists, interacting with advocacy and policy, or making financial contributions.
- Ceebee Gold Foundation: a community-focused charity based in Manchester, working to eradicate poverty and support vulnerable people. They provide culturally appropriate food, wellbeing activities, and practical support to reduce isolation, depression, and anxiety, in addition to training for young people. They hope the project can help raise funds towards securing a permanent community space for the foundation to continue their great work.
- The Outdoor Collaborative: TOC deliver nature-based, outdoor, and creative programmes for young people from underrepresented or disadvantaged backgrounds. Through photography, film, art, and outdoor exploration, they help young people build confidence skills, improve mental health and social connections, and explore potential future pathways. Their goal for this project is for students to generate funds that directly contribute to the excursions and community programmes which they run to help disadvantaged or underrepresented young people.
- Sober Butterfly Collective: a voluntary powered alcohol-free community dedicated to combating social isolation and raising awareness of social anxiety through empowering people to make authentic connections without alcohol. They seek to raise awareness amongst the student population for the work they do, entice new members to attend events they organise, and raise funds to maintain the upkeep of their various comms channels.
- Rekindle: a youth-led education charity working with underprivileged young people who are disengaged from and/or have been let down by the education system. Their programmes help young people think critically, develop confidence and leadership skills. Rekindle hope students on the project will generate new and innovative fundraising initiatives for them, with any funds raised being used to their core youth and community programmes.
- Soul Sisters: Empowering People: a volunteer-led charity supporting women and families affected by domestic abuse. They provide emotional support, peer support spaces, advocacy, and practical guidance to women to help rebuild their confidence, safety and sense of agency after abuse. They hope the project can help them reach new audiences who may not be familiar with their work, using funds to continue their support initiatives.
Remember: you are in competition with the other teams and so the team who raise the most money will be our winners! The winner will be announced in a celebration event on Friday, 8 May, where we will come together and recognise the amazing achievements of all the students on the project. Each member of the winning team will receive a £25 Amazon voucher, in addition to a certificate to commemorate their accomplishments.
How to apply
To be part of this exciting project, please fill out the application form.
- Applications open: Monday, 12 January 2026
- Deadline for applications: Sunday, 8 February 2026, 11.59pm
Why not be a be a part of a project that tests your entrepreneurial skills and enables you to give something back to the community beyond AMBS?
For any questions, drop an email to ambs.hub@manchester.ac.uk.