Tips for your challenge
Walking on a rainy day:
It’s not unusual to encounter bad weather when walking in the UK, so it’s important to have the right equipment.
When walking in adverse weather, remember to check and know your route. Understanding your surroundings will help you avoid difficult terrain and make sure you stick to safer, flat surfaces. Here's some useful equipment to consider:
Waterproof clothing
Walking shoes/boots and walking socks
Warm clothing and layers (thermals, gloves, hats, fleece, long trousers)
Water and food
Mobile phone
About the challenge
What is Stand Up To Cancer?
Brought to you by Cancer Research UK and Channel 4, Stand Up To Cancer is a fundraising campaign that brings the UK together to speed up progress in life-saving cancer research.
Where does the money we raise for Stand Up To Cancer go?
100% of donations received by Cancer Research UK in connection with the SU2C Walkies Challenge will go towards the Stand Up To Cancer campaign, which means 100% of the money is spent on research.
What does the Stand Up To Cancer Walkies Challenge involve?
Supporters raise money by stepping up to the challenge of walking 60 miles throughout April with their four-legged friend. They can split the miles in a way that suits them, but we recommend 2 miles every day of the month.
Why am I being re-directed to Cancer Research UK?
Stand Up To Cancer is a fundraising campaign brought to you by Cancer Research UK and Channel 4. As a result, Stand Up To Cancer occasionally uses the advice, resources and support of Cancer Research UK to ensure your experience of fundraising is fulfilling, enjoyable and fully supported.
I’ve signed up. Now what?
Once you’ve signed up, join the Facebook Group dedicated to this challenge and click 'Join Group'. Once you're in, you can complete a form to get your free dog bandana, get tips for completing your challenge, be inspired by other fundraisers and find out anything you want to know.
I don’t have Facebook. Can I still join the challenge?
Yes! If you don’t have Facebook, you can set up a Cancer Research UK online Giving Page and collect sponsorship for your Stand Up To Cancer Walkies Challenge.
Is there an entry fee?
There is no entry fee for this challenge, but we do ask that you fundraise for Cancer Research UK through your online Giving Page. All donations to the page will automatically be sent to us.
Do I have to start the challenge in April? Can I start my challenge later or earlier?
Whilst we encourage everyone to complete this challenge in April, this is a personal challenge, and you can start and finish your challenge at a time that is convenient for you. If you have difficulty completing your miles, then you can make up for it at any point of the month and continue the challenge into May.
How can I track my miles?
We’ll be sending a digital calendar along with your fundraising pack to help you track your miles. We also recommend the Strava and Fitbit apps, which you can easily link to your online Giving Page. Alternatively, your phone will have plenty of free pedometer apps, or you could buy a cheap one from your local gym or running shop.
I have a puppy, can I still take part?
Yes, you can still take part, but be aware not to over-exercise your puppy. The Kennel Club have lots of helpful information.
Tips to remember:
A good rule of thumb for exercising your puppy is to provide 5 minutes of activity per month of age, up to twice a day. For example, if your puppy is 4 months old, aim for 20 minutes of exercise (4 months x 5 minutes).
As they get older, they can have longer periods of exercise.
It is important to exercise your puppy every day to strengthen their muscles and bones.
Try not to exercise your puppy on a full stomach as they can get bloated.
Is this challenge suitable for my breed of dog?
As a general rule we suggest you speak to your vet for specific information on your breed, age, etc. Just like people, every dog is different and only a trained professional will be able to advise.
How can I hit my weekly target?
There are plenty of ways you can hit your weekly target – attempt to make up the numbers with a couple of shorter walks, or save them for a big walk at the weekend!
What if I don't complete the challenge?
The only thing that matters is that you try your best to complete as much of the challenge as you can. Whether that’s completing 60 miles in April or not, the money that you raise will allow us to keep funding life-saving research. Whatever you manage to achieve, we can’t thank you enough.
Do I need to provide evidence that I’ve completed the challenge?
We trust you! You don’t need to provide evidence that you’ve completed the challenge to us, but your friends and family will want some updates. Make sure you keep them posted on your progress and share videos and photos throughout April – the more updates the better. Supporters who regularly post their progress raise 40% more on average!
We recommend you connect your Giving Page to Fitbit or Strava so you can track your steps or miles automatically.
Please note: With Strava there is sometimes a 48-hour lag in the data being updated. If your miles still aren't showing, disconnect and reconnect to do a hard reset and this will add any miles already on your Strava account.
Can I do the challenge for longer than a month?
Absolutely! If you’ve set up a Giving Page, it’ll remain active so your supporters can continue to donate for as long as you want to keep going.
Your free Stand Up To Cancer dog bandana
How do I get my free dog bandana?
Complete this form to receive your free dog bandana in the post. Once completed, please allow 10 working days for it to arrive.
If you haven’t received your dog bandana after this time, please contact supporter.services@cancer.org.uk.
What if I don’t want a dog bandana?
When filling out your sign-up form, select ‘no’ where it asks if you’d like to receive a dog bandana. You’ll still receive an online Giving Page, be able to join the challenge group and take part! Sign up to the challenge
If you have any further questions, please email supporter.services@cancer.org.uk or call 0300 1231022 (lines open 8am–8pm, Monday to Friday and 9am–5pm at weekends)
Can I order another dog bandana?
Sending out your dog bandanas comes at a cost to us, so please only order one dog bandana per fundraiser to make sure as much money as possible goes towards our life-saving work. We ask that everyone requesting a dog bandana donates something to their fundraising page.
If you have more than one dog, please go to our online shop.
My dog bandana doesn’t fit my dog, what shall I do?
Unfortunately, returning the dog bandanas comes at a cost to Cancer Research UK, therefore, we ask that you keep hold of it. If you would like a replacement, please go to our online shop.
Fundraising
Will I get a medal?
Unfortunately, medals come at a huge cost to the charity so we will not be sending these out. However, we will send all supporters a certificate in their completion email at the end of the challenge and they can access downloadable digital badges to shout about their achievement on social media.
Can people under 18 take part? If they can, how should they register and does it have to be with their guardian’s consent?
Yes, under-18s can take part in this challenge, but we don’t market to them and any third-party platform forums (such as Facebook forums) are only available to people over 18. If under-18s are taking part, their parent or guardian must consent to the child’s participation, supervise the challenge and accept responsibility for complying with the challenge rules. If a child wants to raise money online and/or join a forum, the child’s parent or guardian must register for an online fundraising page and/or join the forum on the child’s behalf.
Can we enter as a team?
Participants must register as individuals, but you can then set up a team Giving Page to take on the challenge and raise money together. Here’s how:
All your team will need to sign up to the Stand Up To Cancer Walkies Challenge so you each have your own online Giving Page.
Once everyone has signed up, log into your account.
Hit the 'Create new team' button and follow the instructions.
Once you've created your team, you can send the team page URL to friends and family so they can join too!
Find more information about setting up a team. Once you’ve set up your team, you can either split up your miles between the group or you can all complete the miles individually across the month.
How do I raise money?
Using our Online Fundraising Platform is the easiest way to raise money. You will receive an online Giving Page once you’ve registered here. You can then share the page with your friends and family to gather sponsorship for your challenge.
How do I close my online Giving Page?
Please note, you don't need to close your page for the money you have raised to transfer to Cancer Research UK. This happens automatically when each donation is made.
If you're happy to keep the page online, but want to stop taking donations, you can change the closing date of your page. Here’s how:
You'll need to go to your Giving Page (make sure you're logged in) and scroll down and select ‘Page settings’.
Select ‘Page closure date’.
You can choose to close the page now or set a future date to close your page.
Tap ‘Save’ for the changes to come into effect. People can still view a closed page but can’t donate to it.
You can reopen a closed page by selecting ‘Keep your page open indefinitely’.
If you'd like to take the page off the site completely, you can email us at OnlineFundraisingQueries@cancer.org.uk and we'll get that sorted for you.
How do I edit/ extend the closing date of my page?
If you'd like to extend the closing date of your fundraising page, you can do this by editing your page. If you need any further support with this please contact our Supporter Services team, who'd be happy to help!
Is there a minimum sponsorship amount?
We don’t set a fundraising target for participants, but we recommend that supporters set themselves a reasonable target of raising £150 or more.
I’m struggling to get any donations; do you have any fundraising tips?
Log in to your page and take a few minutes to personalise it. You can add a photo, update the 'My Story' section to share why raising funds for this cause is important to you.
If you're able to, kick-start the fundraising by adding your own donation to your Online giving page. It can often help to get things going - it's a bit like making sure your friends aren't the first guests at a party.
The third and final tip is to share a post on your social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, anything you use) to tell people about your challenge - and make sure to share the link to your Online giving page in the post.
Remember, any donation can make a difference. As little as £3 could buy a pair of safety goggles to keep our scientists safe while they conduct their cutting-edge experiments. Let us know how you get on by posting on the Facebook group, and we can offer further help if you need it. You've got this!
What could my fundraising pay for?
£3 could buy our scientists a pair of safety goggles to protect them as they work in the lab.
£5 could buy a box of gloves for scientists to use to carry out their experiments.
£15 could buy a lab timer to keep our Stand Up To Cancer scientists on track as they go about their research, finding out what makes cancer cells tick.
£20 could buy a lab coat – protecting our Stand Up To Cancer scientists from potentially dangerous chemical spillages.
£30 could buy full personal protective equipment (PPE) for our Stand Up To Cancer scientists, so they can carry out their life-saving experiments safely.
I’ve hit my fundraising target; can I raise my fundraising target if I’ve met it?
Yes absolutely! You can raise your fundraising target on your online Giving Page at any time. Supporters who increase their fundraising target raise an average of 51% more than those who don’t, so why not head over to your page and raise yours!
Are there any fundraising materials available?
We have plenty of fundraising materials and ideas to help you raise life-saving donations. for everything you need for your challenge.
Can I split my sponsorship money between Cancer Research UK and another charity?
This challenge is a fundraising initiative specifically developed by us, therefore all money raised must go solely to Stand Up To Cancer at Cancer Research UK.
What is Gift Aid?
Gift Aid is a tax relief allowing UK charities to reclaim an extra 25% on every eligible donation made by a UK taxpayer. This means Cancer Research UK can claim an extra 25p for every £1 donated, without it costing you or your sponsors an extra penny. For a donation to be eligible for Gift Aid, sponsors need to fill out the sponsorship form following the instructions at the top of the page.