Founded in 1949, the Mental Health Foundation is a leading UK charity that provides information, carries out research, undertakes campaigns and works to improve services for anyone affected by mental health problems, whatever their age and wherever they live, fighting to bring mental health out into the open so people no longer feel ashamed or alone.

The Mental Health Foundation has a reputation for robust, highly regarded research to help people survive, recover from and prevent mental health problems and reaches millions of people every year through their work with the media to encourage a better understanding of mental illness.

They do this by:
• Learning what makes and keeps people mentally well
• Researching what will lessen the impact that mental illness has on someone’s everyday life, their relationships with their family and friends, and their opportunities for education and employment
• Communicating their findings to a wide range of people
• Turning their research into practical solutions that make a difference to people’s lives

The Mental Health Foundation website www.mentalhealth.org.uk is the most comprehensive source of mental health information in Europe, with over 2.5 million people visiting every year. They are experts at reaching the people online who need their help.

More than 100,000 booklets are sent out every year to help people looking for more information for themselves, or loved ones who are experiencing mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and self-harm.

A gift of £20 can help the Mental Health Foundation identify and reach families who need their help; for families who are struggling with the stigma and secrecy of mental illness their information packs are a lifeline. They help families to understand what their loved ones are going through and tell people where to go for help. Just knowing that they are not alone can help prevent someone taking their own life.

Greenpeace exists because this fragile earth deserves a voice. It needs solutions. It needs change. It needs action.

Greenpeace are an independent non-profit global campaigning organisation that uses non-violent, creative confrontation to expose global environmental problems and their causes. We research solutions and alternatives to help provide a path for a green and peaceful future.

Greenpeace’s independence is crucial to their work which is why they will never accept money from companies or political organisations. It is also why they need the support of individuals to continue their work protecting and preserving the worlds environment.

EveryChild is an international development charity committed to protecting the rights of the world’s most vulnerable and marginalised children.

Across 17 countries we fight to protect the most vulnerable and excluded children, giving them the chance to grow up in loving families with a safe and secure future. In all our projects we aim to innovate to bring about lasting, positive change in partnership with communities and governments.

Our projects give children the tools they need to shape their own futures. In order to do this we listen to what the communities tell us, and design each project to meet their specific needs.

We deliver ground-breaking child-centred services to support and protect those children who are most vulnerable and hardest to reach, already separated from their families and coping alone.

Breakthrough Breast Cancer is a pioneering charity dedicated to the prevention, treatment and ultimate eradication of breast cancer. We fight on three fronts: research, campaigning and education. Our aim is to bring together the best minds and rally the support of all those whose lives have been, or may one day be, affected by the disease. The result will save lives and change futures – by removing the fear of breast cancer for good.

In the UK nearly 46,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer every year, making it the most common form of cancer. With friends and family all affected by a diagnosis, millions of us will experience the difficulties and distress that breast cancer can bring.

One in nine women in the UK will develop breast cancer at some point in their lifetime. But we’re not standing still. With your support we can continue with our vital research to ensure that people affected by breast cancer have improved treatments, and access to them, a better quality of life, and a fighting chance.

You donate online or find out more about the work of the charity by visiting www.Breakthrough.org.uk

Abandoned and defenceless Grace, Genie, Hugo and Blossom were lucky enough to be found by a member of the public who brought them to us. Otherwise the future for these adorable kittens would have been very dark indeed. If they had not been rescued by The Blue Cross these kittens, like thousands of pets across the UK, would almost certainly not be here today… Grace, Genie, Hugo and Blossom are just four amongst more than 6,000 unwanted, stray and abandoned animals that are taken in by The Blue Cross each year. The Blue Cross is working harder than ever before to find and rescue stray and unwanted pets that would otherwise be put down. Last year we saw a sharp increase in the number of pets being brought to our centres because their owners could no longer afford to look after them. We expect more pets to lose their homes for this reason in 2009. Please support the Blue Cross and help protect the valuable work that they do.

Action Medical Research is the UK’s most forward thinking charity.
We have been making medical breakthroughs for over 50 years, supporting research that include; the UK polio vaccine, ultrasound scanning in pregnancy and the hip replacement operation. We are looking for answers to a wide range of diseases and conditions that affect young and old alike including crohns disease, epilepsy, premature birth and many more.

We have a full portfolio of exciting events and we have built an enviable reputation in cycling events. Our flagship ride is London to Paris which caters for 600 riders and takes place over 4 routes. It finishes in Paris in time to watch the final of the Tour De France. We also have a great selection of regional rides including the famous Action100 Bristol or Bath to London. We also offer treks in the UK and abroad, team events, marathons and many other exciting experiences.

Although the basic running costs of the hospital are met by the NHS, the charity needs to raise over £50 million each year to fund, the latest specialist equipment, medical research, redevelopment and family accommodation. We want to ensure the hospital remains a world class specialist paediatric hospital, giving new hope to children suffering from complex and life-threatening conditions.

For me, helping raise funds and awareness of Great Ormond Street Hospitals work and requirements for funding is of paramount importance having had my oldest friend Oliver Nash (author of The Primate Puzzle book) treated and cared for during his childhood years by GOSH doctors, consultants and nursing staff.

You can help their cause be donating online at GOSH.org. Please spare some change to help UK children in need of hospital care and recovery.

GOSH is a UK registered charity – Charity Registration number 235825