Philanthropy and major gifts
Generous support through philanthropy, major gifts, trusts and foundations enables us to spread our life saving message to young people and the adults in their lives through evidence-based drug education.
Major gifts received by the DSM Foundation have the power to save young lives. What happened to Dan was the worst-case scenario, but it was also avoidable – your gift will enable us to reach even more young people and families so that no other family needs face such a devastating loss.
What your gift could achieve:
Recent government data for England tells us that 44% of 15-year-olds have been offered illegal drugs and one in four have tried them (NHS Digital, 2024) – helping young people to navigate the risks surrounding drugs is at the heart of what we do. Major gifts of £5,000 or beyond have the potential to make a real and lasting impact on the lives of young people, keeping them safe from harm.
Our commitment to you:
£5,000
£15,000
£50,000
Your generous gift will make a huge difference
In return, we promise to:
- Ensure your gift is allocated according to your wishes
- Invite you to experience our work, which could include a parent workshop or play performance
- Report on the impact of your gift
- Invite you to our annual A Year in The Life event
- Make you feel great for having made a difference to the lives of young people
Make your money go further when you donate using tax incentives such as Payroll Giving and other tax reliefs. Make a donation today or contact admin@dsmfoundation.org.uk so that we can help you donate to DSM Foundation in a way that suits you.
- I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die play performances – the play tours of I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die are the most powerful element of our drug education programme but also our most expensive. This award-winning verbatim play, which tells Dan’s story through the words of his family and friends, communicates the core messages of risk, choice and consequence, friendship and forgiveness, and love and loss.
- Fund our work in Scotland – with drug deaths in Scotland remaining at tragically high levels, the need for good drug education for all young people has never been greater, and we’re in a great position to step in and support the work being done to prevent future harm. With strong support from Police Scotland, positive outcomes of the University of Aberdeen evaluation of our drug education pilot in schools in the NE region, and an interest and appetite ever growing across the country, we have a great opportunity to extend our multi-component programme across Scotland. However, we’re only able to do what funding will allow us. If you would like to support our work in Scotland, then please get in touch.
- Drug Educators – our team of Drug Educators deliver sessions differentiated by age and stage of the students, fitting in with whatever requirements are set by the school or college – everything they do is about keeping young people’s needs at the very centre. They also deliver I Wish I’d Known workshops to parents and carers, as well as training for teachers and other professionals.
- Core support team – our core support team is a small (but mighty!) versatile group who make it all possible – organising school bookings, coordinating the team of drug educators, preparing online materials, fundraising, managing the finances, termly newsletters, applying for and reporting to external funders, website, governance, supporting key events and so much more. As our team continues to expand, there is a need to fund this growth.
- Hardware and software needs – as our team grows, so does the need for technology to enable us to work as efficiently and effectively as possible. Our CRM provides us with critical access to our systems which allow us to access our contacts, bookings process with schools, fundraising income etc. We couldn’t live without it!
To find out more, please get in touch with our Corporate and Community Fundraiser, Grace McCormack.
Email: grace@dsmfoundation.org.uk
