Primary school fundraising ideas
Primary school events work best when they’re simple, inexpensive to run, and engaging for young children. For each idea below, you’ll get how to do the steps, plus the basic logistics you need to plan for, and an Ireland specific note about PTA and community networks.
A primary school-aged child and a teenager won’t be able to do the same things, but that doesn’t mean you should be limited. Rather, you just need to tailor your fundraising for each age group.
Below are some good fundraising ideas for school.
1. Fancy dress day
Give children free rein on what they choose to dress up as, or come up with a theme once a term. Examples could include Disney, ‘What I Want to Be When I Grow Up’, and Halloween in autumn. A classic of the primary school fundraising ideas in the genre.
- What it is: A themed dress-up day where pupils donate to take part.
- How to run it: Choose a theme, set a small entry fee or ask for donations, and tell parents in advance. If needed, you can print a simple permission note, print a poster with a QR code to the fundraiser link, and have volunteers on the gate to check payments.
- What you need: Posters, stickers, small prizes, volunteer rota.
- Promotion tip: Share class photos, with parental consent, on the school WhatsApp and on the school noticeboard.
2. Sponsored bounce
Few things get children more excited than a huge bouncy castle. Before the bounce, give the children sponsor forms to collect as many sponsors as they can in a bid to win a prize for the most sponsors.
Make sure parents sign forms stating that the school will not accept responsibility for injury and obtain an insurance certificate from the bouncy castle operators. If this sounds like too much hassle, why not treat parents to a sponsored silence?
- What it is: Children collect pledges to take part in a bounce event on an inflatable bounce house.
- How to run it: Hire a bouncy castle from an insured supplier, get parental consent, and block a long-play slot so each class gets a turn. Ask sponsors to give money online using a GoFundMe page.
- What you need: Insurance certificate, signed consent forms, buckets of water, first aid kit.
- Promotion tip: Invite local businesses to sponsor a session, and thank them online.
3. Carol singing at community spots
Christmas is a smart time to ramp up your school fundraising as the festive spirit in the air may encourage people to give more generously. Take a group of cute school children carol singing in the local community and the donations are sure to roll in. Consider selling mince pies and hot chocolate, or tree decorations and cards made by the kids, to passers-by. Print out some spare song sheets so they can join in.
- What it is: Children sing at a local shopping street, or in the school hall, collecting donations.
- How to run it: Pick safe public spots and get permission, arrange supervising adults, and plan short sets to keep the children engaged. Use buckets, a contactless card reader, and a QR code that links to your GoFundMe page for easy payments.
- What you need: Song sheets, volunteers, safe crossing plans, QR posters.
- Promotion tip: Tell parents and local shops, and post a short video online after the event.
4. Cake Sale
For some school fundraising Ireland-style, consider a cake sale. Bake Off has inspired many an amateur baker, so give parents the chance to show off their skills (or hit the local supermarket!) with a classic cake sale.
Children will enjoy getting involved with making and decorating cakes. Less so with the washing up.
- What it is: A cake sale is exactly what it sounds like. Children from the school get their parents to help them make various types of cakes, and then sell them at a cake sale at school or another event.
- How to run it: Set a date that aligns with a school event, or choose a Friday afternoon when parents are already on site. Ask families to donate clearly labelled baked goods, and provide ingredient lists for allergy awareness. Create a volunteer rota for set up, sales, and tidy up, with at least two adults handling money at all times.
- What you need: Tables, tablecloths, price labels, allergy signage, cash box with float, card reader or QR poster, volunteer rota sheet.
- Promotion tip: Announce the bake sale in the school newsletter, share reminders in parent WhatsApp groups, and ask pupils to design posters to display at the school gates.
5. Smarties challenge
Don’t make this a competition to raise the most money, as that puts too much pressure on parents, especially those with multiple children at the school. You could give children a fortnight to ‘earn’ as many coins as they could by doing jobs around the house.
- What it is: Encourage children to do some chores in their house or a supervised community to earn coins and save them in the Smarties or sweeties tube.
- How to run it: Give every child a tube of sweeties and ask them to bring it back empty of smarties, but full of loose change (that they’ve asked their parents for first, of course) if they can.
- What you need: A tube of sweeties, they can hold coins and these can quickly top up.
- Promotion tip: One alternative, suggested on mumsnet, is to offer a prize for the best-decorated tube.
Secondary school fundraising ideas
Like primary school children, secondary school fundraising should be tailored to reflect the age of the students raising money and taking part. This should differ slightly to younger kids, as there’s more age-appropriate things you can do.
Here are some of the examples:
6. Fundraising contest
Spark interest and excitement for fundraising among students by getting them to join forces with some friends, come up with a team name, settle on a school fundraising project and compete with other groups to raise the most money possible and win a prize.
- What it is: Students form teams to compete in challenges for prizes. This can be academic, sporting, or creative.
- How to run it: Decide the contest type, set the entry rules, book the hall, and schedule heats with judging panels. Ask teams to pay a small entry fee, or have sponsors pay for team shirts or something similar.
- What you need: Venue booking, judges, prize budget, online sign-up link.
- Promotion tip: Share posters, and put a countdown on the school website.
7. Get revenge on teacher
Teachers can play a big role in any school fundraising efforts by being good sports willing to do silly things for money! Set a fundraising target which, if met, means a teacher has to follow through on a promise. Promises could include getting a crazy haircut or having a cream pie rubbed into their face.
- What it is: Teachers agree to do a funny task if a fundraising target is met, like wearing a costume or getting a pie in the face.
- How to run it: Set a clear target for the challenge, explain the rules to parents, and choose tasks that the teachers consent to. Sell tickets for the event, or collect online donations with milestone updates.
- What you need: Consent forms, hygiene supplies, venue, ticketing system.
- Promotion tip: Use video teasers to build excitement.
8. Disco
Pupils from the younger years will enjoy the chance to dress up and party with their friends, albeit with some parents or teachers lurking in the background. School gyms are big enough to invite everybody – and maybe even a guest school or two.
- What it is: An after-school dance with entry fee, stalls, and refreshments.
- How to run it: Arrange age-appropriate bands, have clear arrival and collection rules, and use a DJ or playlist. Sell reduced price tickets in advance, and full price door tickets to manage numbers. Ask parents to staff the doors, run a volunteer rota, and make sure you have food.
- What you need: Sound system, lighting, tickets, volunteers, first aider.
- Promotion tip: Offer a discounted family ticket for parents that want to stay.
9. Book swap
Fundraising ideas that also serve educational purposes are win-win for schools. Encourage pupils to keep reading by asking them to bring in books they’ve read or no longer want. If they bring in a small donation, they can choose a ‘new’ one from the table to take home.
- What it is: Pupils donate books and swap them for small donations.
- How to run it: Set collection days for donated books, price items by condition, and run the swap for classes. Use a simple pricing structure, and allow pupils to purchase tokens to spend on books.
- What you will need: Collection boxes, tokens, tables, pricing labels.
- Promotion tip: Share a list of popular titles to attract readers.
10. Spy ring and other campus games
Every student pays to enter and receive the name of the student they have to ‘catch’. Once caught, that student hands over the name of the student they were trying to catch. This continues until there is only one spy standing, who is proclaimed the winner! Spy ring works particularly well in big schools where detective work is involved to find out who your target is. Teachers getting involved makes for some amusing teacher-pupil lunch-time chases through the corridors, but you might want to put a ban on dining room chases or mid-lesson catches!
- What it is: Large scale campus games with entry fees where pupils hunt for clues.
- How to run it: Map the area, set safe boundaries, and give pupil teams briefing notes. Time the event in a single day, plan marshals at checkpoints, and keep emergency contacts on hand. Sell team entry online, and invite local businesses to sponsor clues or prizes.
- What you need: Maps, marshals, first aiders, sponsor prizes.
- Promotion tip: Use class competitions to generate entries, and post leaderboards.
PTA school fundraising ideas
Parents and teachers can get involved together to help fundraise in schools. There’s plenty of ways both groups can collaborate together to raise funds – both in school and in the community.
Here’s some of the easiest ways to do this.
11. Clothes swap
Shopping environmentally is all the rage, so organising a clothes swap in the school gym with an entry fee is one of the best PTA fundraising ideas. Everybody brings clothes in good condition that they no longer want, browse the rails and take home the same number of clothes that they brought. If they want to take home more, charge a little extra per item. Spread the word with posters around the local area. Guests will be paying peanuts for a new wardrobe, meaning this event is bound to be popular.
- What it is: A clothes swap asks families to donate good-quality items, and then let other families buy or swap them for a small fee.
- How to run it: Set shifts for intake, sorting, sales, and returns, with two people on intake and two on sales at all times. Budget for rails, hangers, price stickers, and a float. Count the takings at each shift change, log totals on a shared sheet, and bank proceeds via the PTA account.
- Promotion tip: Share size lists and photo teasers in WhatsApp and Facebook groups, post pick-up details the day before, and ask class reps to remind parents in the morning.
12. Quiz night
Bit of a boffin when it comes to general knowledge? Used to winning big at your local pub? One of the most popular PTA fundraising ideas, parents will love showing off at a termly quiz night and might even be willing to buy a ticket for the privilege.
- What it is: An evening quiz with teams, rounds, and a simple table that raises money through ticket sales and stalls.
- How to run it: Create teams for question setting, hall setup, bar or tuck management, door, and score keeping. Budget for printing, prizes, and a small float, aim for ticket prices that cover costs and raise a margin. Sell tickets online in advance, and reconcile the float at the end of the night.
- Promotion tip: Post a shareable poster with a team sign up link, and encourage class reps to fill tables early.
13. School cookbook
Source family recipes from staff and put together a cookbook, noting which recipe came from whom and the story behind it. Kids will love finding out more about their teachers and parents will welcome fresh inspiration for meal-times. It’s easy to find an online publisher to print books from digital pages that you can then sell to parents.
- What it is: Collect family recipes, edit the book, and sell printed or digital copies to parents and local supporters.
- How to run it: Assign roles for recipe collection, proof reading, layout, printing, and order fulfilment. Budget for printing or use a print-on-demand service to cut upfront cost. Take orders online, or accept card on collection day, and keep a single spreadsheet to track orders and payments.
- Promotion tip: Share recipe previews, ask pupils to nominate favourites, and post order links in parent groups with a simple deadline reminder.
14. Movie night under the stars
Turn your school grounds into an open-air cinema with a movie night under the stars. You can invite families to kick back on blankets, enjoy snacks, and watch a favourite film for a warm and welcoming event that brings the community together while raising funds in a fun way.
- What it is: An outdoor or indoor film night with ticketed entry, popcorn sales, and a short interval quiz.
- How to run it: Organise a team for ticket sales, technical setup, refreshments, stewarding, and clear up. Budget for licensing, screen hire or projector, and refreshments.
- Promotion tip: Share the film title and food menu in WhatsApp and Facebook groups, offer family ticket deals, and remind parents about start and finish times.
15. PTA vs pupils football match
A sports match is a fantastic way to raise funds and engage the local community. It’s a good chance to get lots of people involved. This can include teachers, parents, friends of the school and the wider community. You can also explore the idea of doing a teacher vs students fun match.
- What it is: A friendly football match between the PTA and pupils where spectators donate or pay a small entry fee.
- How to run it: Set a date, use the school field or a local pitch, organise teams, and collect small entry fees or donations from players and spectators.
- Promotion tip: Promote the match through school newsletters, social media, and posters, and encourage families to come along and support their team.
Quick and simple fundraising ideas that work
Below is a short list of quick fundraising ideas that take little time to set up, and why they work.
16. 1-hour set-up ideas
- Cake sale at drop off: Bring home baked goods to sell, use a cash tin and QR donation posters, and finish before school begins. It’s fast because parents are on site already.
- Sponsored silence in class: Ask pupils to collect pledges for a timed silence, and collect online later. It works fast and is easy to put together because it’s low cost and easy to explain.
17. Weekend ideas
- School car boot sale: Family stall holders pay to pitch, and locals buy bargains. This works well over the weekends because it fits family schedules, and can bring in the wider community.
- Community fun run or colour run: Charge a registration fee, with sponsors for water stations during a fun run. This suits weekends because you can find bigger spaces to run in, and more adults are available to help.
18. Online first ideas
- Virtual talent show: Students upload short clips for an online vote behind a paywall. This can be started online because the content can be judged remotely.
- Crowdfund a trip: Create a GoFundMe fundraiser for a school trip, and share the link with parent networks.
Crowdfund your Way to Success
Crowdfunding can make school fundraising simpler, and it lets parents, family, and friends donate from anywhere. We can be with you every step of the way while you fundraise. GoFundMe is a trusted leader in online fundraising. With simple pricing and a team of Trust & Safety experts in your corner, you can raise money or make a donation with peace of mind.
Here are some good examples of when people have used GoFundMe for school fundraising before.
The community rallied together to raise thousands of Euros to purchase a Cubbie, an innovative solution that would be immensely beneficial to the children in the school.
Appealing to the local community, parents and teachers alike were able to raise funds and keep people engaged.
Taking on the Dublin Marathon to raise money, this fundraiser had a school at the heart of its mission.
Two runners took on the challenge in order to raise funds for sensory rooms and were able to utilise their local network of teachers, friends and the school community.
Start your school fundraiser
If you’re in need of funds quickly or parents are calling for a faff-free approach to school fundraising, set up a GoFundMe page.
GoFundMe differs from many other fundraising platforms in that there are no hidden fees. Our experts are on hand to offer advice around the clock while downloading our mobile app means you can check in on your fundraising progress while on the school run.
Setting up your GoFundMe page could not be quicker or easier, and there’s a treasure trove of expert fundraising tips on our blog to help you raise the most money possible for your school’s cause.
