The 2.6 Challenge: A simple idea to help those who help
Last Sunday, thousands of runners and spectators should have been turning the capital’s streets into a colourful carnival at the 40th edition of the London Marathon. Instead, across the UK people of all ages were running, cycling, hopping, skipping, cooking, flipping, cartwheeling, bouncing, dressing up and having fun to fundraise in a uniquely British way.
The 2.6 Challenge brought joy to lockdown, dominating the news and social media as the nation united to help save the UK’s charities. Just four days since The 2.6 Challenge was launched, more than £7.8 million has been raised from a campaign that was created and delivered in just 22 days.
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On Friday 13 March, the postponement of the 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon was announced. The world’s biggest annual one-day fundraising event, which raised a record £66.4 million for charities in 2019, became one of thousands of fundraising events across the UK to be delayed or cancelled.
The impact on charities has been devastating. The National Council for Voluntary Organisations estimates that charities have lost £4 billion in income due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with a huge number of them now facing closure. Services are being cut at a time when vulnerable members of society need them most and crucial research programmes will lose vital funding.
After the postponement of its 40th race, London Marathon Events (LME) started thinking about how it could support charities and mark Marathon Day, Sunday 26 April. The 2.6 Challenge idea was born.
Last year the UK’s mass participation event organisers had created an informal group to discuss ways of improving sustainability practices. Now the group reassembled – co-chaired by Hugh Brasher (Event Director of London Marathon Events) and Nick Rusling (CEO of Human Race) – working together to support the UK’s charities. Ideas were shared and discussed, with LME’s 2.6 concept the clear winner.
The idea was simple: a call to action to dream up an activity based around the numbers 2 and 6 and to fundraise for a chosen charity.
Then the work began, with the newly christened MSO (mass participation sports events organisers) leveraging its networks. Moving at incredible speed, a brand was developed and the website designed and built, including online fundraising platforms. Webinars were organised for other event organisers, charities and corporates, and in a breathtaking 10 days the campaign was launched on 16 April. The 2.6 Challenge had begun.
“The response we’ve had to The 2.6 Challenge has been incredible,” says Brasher. “It has been so inspiring to see the nation – from superstar celebrities to young children – come together to help save the UK’s charities.
“The best of Great Britain’s society shines through whenever we have our backs to the wall. People have been in their homes for over a month now and I think many of us feel helpless. While we understand it’s necessary to stay at home to save the NHS, many of us want to do something extra to help those in greatest need and The 2.6 Challenge allows us to do that, get active and help save the UK’s charities. It’s important to say that Sunday 26 April was just the start of the campaign and we want to encourage people who haven’t already taken part to think of a challenge and give it a go.”
As well as the thousands of individuals taking on The 2.6 Challenge, many organisations have also embraced the campaign, says Rusling: “We’ve been blown away by how many businesses have got involved – perfect for keeping connected, keeping active, building CSR, challenging clients and customers.”
To find out more about how to get involved, visit twopointsixchallenge.co.uk. The website includes inspiring challenge ideas, a marketing toolkit and links to charity fundraising pages.