Money and Fundraising
How does the money side work?
One of the functions of the Friends is to provide a 'pot' for each ensemble, where they can put money earned, for example from ticket sales, refreshments or raffles at concerts. Individual orchestras can then initially call on their own 'pot', for example:
- to help with the costs of specialist sectional support at rehearsals
- to buy or hire additional music or instruments
- to subsidise workshops and residential courses
- other unexpected expenses that may arise from time to time.
Income from membership subscriptions, the Pyramid Concert and similar activities is put into a general fund. This can be called on as reasonably required by any of our ensembles, from the junior string groups up to SYO. We hope we will always be able to give support when needed.
As a registered charity, we are bound by Charity Commission rules. Our finances must always be above board. For this reason we may decline a request to temporarily hold money from other, otherwise legitimate sources.
Bridge Teas
Several times a year on a Sunday afternoon, some of the Friends provide tea and sandwiches for a bridge club in Romsey. In October, the event raised £112.93 for SYO.
How else could I help?
Do you, or could you, ever shop online for such things as:
- Books, CDs, DVDs, plus DVD rental
- Sheet music
- Toys, games and gadgets
- Insurance (home, motor, pet, student...) and other financial products
- Stationery, office products, printer cartriges
- Fashion (women's, men's, kids', everyone's...)
- Holiday breaks, flights, hotels, camping and cottage/gîte rental
- Food, wine and nibbles from both specialists and supermarkets
- Mobile phones and broadband services ... etc.
Or, especially with Christmas coming, do you need ideas for unusual gifts?
Through an organisation called Spend and Raise (formerly buy.at), we have special arrangements with a range of retailers and suppliers of goods and services, the majority being household names.
Just click on this link: www.spendandraise.com/fsyo/). You'll need to do this every time in order to generate a commission. (If you have the buy.at URL on your favourites, don't worry - you'll be redirected.) Locate a retailer's website from the list on the Spend and Raise home page. These are the 'normal' sites with exactly the same goods and prices as if you had navigated there direct.
After you make a purchase, FSYO will be paid a commission, usually somewhere between 4% and 10% of the purchase price, or occasionally a fixed amount. To earn the commission however, you must access the retail site each time through one of the links given.
Amazon has now re-joined the scheme. eBay and LateRooms.com are due to re-join the scheme "in the coming weeks", due to waiting for some techical work to be finished.
Suppliers may change from time to time. Inclusion of a trader name or link does not constitue an endorsement. FSYO cannot accept responsibility for the content of any external site. Please remember that we still have some excellent independent retailers in the area, such as Triangle Pianos in Bitterne and October Books in Portswood.