Welcome to Team YMCA!

You are taking on a remarkable challenge and we are here to support you every step of the way. In this portal, you will find helpful and useful advice, digital assets and all the essential information you need to get you to the finish line. 

Looking for something else? If you have any questions or need any help, get in touch with the Marathon Team at YMCA: [email protected]

Event date: Sunday 26 April 2026

Fundraising target: £1,900

Reaching your Fundraising Goal

Your JustGiving Page

Fundraising Ideas

Fundraising Plan

Fundraising Assets

Useful Resources

Essential Information & FAQs

Spread the Word – Your Social Media Toolkit

For many of the young people and communities YMCA supports, everyday life can feel like a marathon.

You have committed to raising an incredible £1,900 to transform lives – giving young people a safe home, mental health support, and hope for the future. Every step you take helps them find the strength they need to set goals and ‘go the distance’ to achieve them.  

Thank you for showing that when things get tough, you’re there for them.

Having a JustGiving page makes it easy to: 

• • Promote your challenge 
• • Keep track of your fundraising progress 
• • Share updates 
• • Raise money securely 

With sponsorship money coming straight to YMCA, you do not have to collect it – and Gift Aid will be applied automatically to add an extra 25% to eligible donations! You can add any offline donations to your JustGiving page to keep your grand total updated.  

Create your JustGiving page linked to our #TeamYMCA London Marathon campaign by clicking here.

Host a Mini Marathon and Family Fun Day 

Get the whole community involved by setting up a mini marathon for young people as part of a family fun day. Put on some classic fete-day games that everyone can take part in – coconut shy, ring toss, guess the number of sweets in the jar, name the cuddly toy, welly throwing, perhaps even the stocks! Ask for a set donation at entry and to play the games.

Organise a Great YMCA Bake Off 

Heat up your bake sale with some friendly competition; ask for a donation to enter and have a small prize ready for the winner.  

You can do this in conjunction with a YMCA Tea Talks event. Our Small Talks mental health campaign encourages people to have open conversations and take the time to listen to others … so why not take a break, with some cake and a cuppa, and have a chat with family, friends or colleagues?  

Organise a dress up or dress down day at work 

Ask colleagues to donate to participate – and maybe even set out a fine for choosing not to. It could be fancy dress at Halloween or sparkles and festive jumpers at Christmas. 

Remember – make sure to get the go-ahead from your boss or your HR team before inviting people to come into the office in their pyjamas! 

Or maybe you could…

• • Host a dinner party and ask guests for a donation.

• • Ask for donations instead of presents for your birthday and Christmas.

• • Have a jumble sale or car boot sale – be clear that you are doing it in aid of YMCA and say whether it is the profit only or all money raised that will be donated.

Matched Funding

An easy way to boost your total is asking if your employer will make a matched donation.  

Many companies are willing to support their employees in this way and some even have a specific budget for this type of donation. 

You could also ask if you can promote your JustGiving page on your company’s internal communications, your work email signature, or get featured in a newsletter or on their social media channels.  

Keeping Motivated

You may find it helps to set yourself mini fundraising goals alongside your training plan. For example, to have raised £600 by Week 8. This is a good way of managing your progress and you can celebrate both your training and fundraising milestones with your networks.  

If getting in the public eye will help you stick to your commitments, why not contact your local paper to see if they’ll run a short feature on you? Neighbourhood and local community websites and social media pages are also a good way of raising your profile.  

If you have an idea but are unsure, please contact [email protected]. We’re here to help! 

‘Find your local YMCA’ map – find a YMCA near you. 

Trust Impact Dashboard – see the live stats for YMCA’s impact. 

About YMCA – share the word about what we do.  

• When will I receive my running vest?

We will send you your Team YMCA running vest in enough time to make sure it’s the right fit for you.

• When will I receive my race pack?

You will receive your registration email from London Marathon a week or so before event day. This will include your unique collection QR code that you’ll need to collect your event pack from the TCS London Marathon Running Show at ExCeL London.

Your registration email will also tell you all your important arrival information for marathon day, including your start wave and time.

• What time does the TCS London Marathon 2026 start?

The race usually starts between 9.30am and 11am. Runners will receive confirmation of their wave start time by email from London Marathon Events.

• What is the route for the TCS London Marathon 2026?

You can see the full route on the TCS London Marathon website. The route begins at Greenwich Park and ends on The Mall next to St James’ Park.

Sharing your marathon journey online is one of the best ways to boost your fundraising and inspire support. Here you’ll find ready-to-use graphics, templates, and example posts to help spread the word on your social channels. Whether it’s announcing your place with #TeamYMCA, updating friends on training, or thanking donors, these assets make it simple to create eye-catching content and maximise your impact.

View Social Media Toolkit

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