Our perfect wedding - giving away the gifts
KAY and Dougie Flockhart did not want wedding gifts when they married in May – they invited guests to help a hospice instead.
Successful artist Kay and Dougie, a professional rugby union player with Doncaster Knights, are financially comfortable so decided to eschew the traditional gifts in favour of supporting nearby children’s hospice Bluebell Wood.
Kay, 39, says: ‘Given my mum had died five years previously from bowel cancer, we thought we would look for a local charity that cares for those suffering from cancer.
‘After a lot of research, it became obvious that Bluebell Wood was the only choice. The fact that we had just had a beautiful daughter, IonaStorm, made us realise how lucky we are.’
Using her artistic skills, Kay designed an envelope that wedding guests could put donations into – including a box they could tick confirming their status as taxpayers and eligibility for their money to be boosted by Gift Aid.
With Gift Aid, charities can claim an extra 25p for every £1 an individual donates, provided they have signed a declaration form confirming they are a taxpayer.
Higher rate or additional rate taxpayers are then able to claim back a portion of their donation through self-assessment or an adjustment to their tax code.
For example, a £100 donation is boosted to £125 by the Government. The individual can then claim back 20 per cent (£25) if a higher rate taxpayer or 25 per cent (£31.25) if an additional rate taxpayer.
Under another Government scheme, payroll giving, a charitable donation is made from gross pay – usually monthly. It means a £100 donation costs basic rate taxpayers just £80 while the cost for higher rate and additional rate taxpayers is £60 and £55 respectively.
Payroll giving is only possible if an employer offers it. To date more than 8,500 companies have embraced the scheme.
Kay and Dougie collected £2,050 from their wedding guests – with Bluebell Wood receiving a further £512 in gift aid. The Flockharts, who live in Doncaster, continue to do their bit for Bluebell.
Dougie, 30, who finished last season as the Championship’s leading points scorer, is now hoping to get some of the children at Bluebell Wood to visit Doncaster Knights’ ground before the end of the year.