Santa in the City is in its ninth year of holding its Christmas fundraising run, and is on track for its biggest year yet.

When Arun Sharma, CFO of The Fundraising Agency, first started with Santa in the City back in 2015, they had 450 runners rock up. This year, more than 3,000 runners are taking to the streets of London across two nights dressed in red Santa suits.

Runners set off from St Paul’s Cathedral, running past landmarks like the River Thames, Millennium Bridge, and Tower Bridge.

Runners celebrating finishing the race

According to Enthuse’s Donor Pulse report, 42% of people say they’re more likely to give during the Christmas season. Santa in the City is making the most of that trend whilst bringing people together for the festive season.

Rebecca Millburn, CEO of Santa in the City, says they purposefully don’t make charities commit to a number of places and pay for them upfront, compared to other fundraising events:

“Charities can reserve the spaces, get their supporters and then pay for the spaces they use. That means that they can take part in these challenge events completely risk free and hopefully raise a lot of money for their really great causes”

Whilst Santa in the City’s model allows runners to fundraise for the charity of their choice, this year’s lead charity is Sarcoma UK – a charity for a rare group of bone and soft tissue cancers. Less than 1% of all cancer diagnoses are Sarcoma and doctors often have never seen a case before, leaving patients more likely to go undiagnosed.

For Sarcoma UK, raising awareness is as important as raising money for research. Sarcoma UK’s Events Manager Louisa Morgan said:

“Every Santa running for Sarcoma UK through London’s streets is more than just a runner – they’re a beacon of hope for the 5,300 people diagnosed with sarcoma each year and their families who are desperate for more research and better treatments.”

Santa in the City is this evening at 7pm meeting in Paternoster Square at 7pm.

News