Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

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Immanuela's Note:

Hello! As we approach the end of the year and the season of giving, as well as resolutions for 2024, I, like many, have been thinking about how I would like the next new year to begin - how to start as I mean to go on, what I can do to challenge myself, and in what ways I can make myself useful to others. So, in the spirit of those considerations, for 3 months from January to March 2024, I will be running 3 half-marathons to raise funds for the ICAS Foundation.

The ICAS Foundation is a registered charity launched by ICAS to provide help and support for university students who are within the lower household income thresholds for support in higher education (in line with the grant recipient thresholds of SAAS/Student Finance England), and studying to enter the accounting field. Their supplemental support for students includes non-repayable bursaries of up to £2,500 per academic year, mentoring from experienced Chartered Accountants, and direction into internship programmes and careers post-graduation. Currently, the programme offers support in studying accredited Accounting or Finance degrees at 21 universities in the UK.

The ICAS Foundation 25 initiative is a goal set up by ICAS Vice President Alison Cornwell to raise a total of £25,000 for the Foundation in 2023/24, with CAs like me completing challenges to help the Foundation continue its work for future accountancy professionals. £25,000 creates a year's worth of bursaries for 10 or more students that need it.

My challenge is simple: complete the three half-marathons in the next three months starting from January to March 2024. The races have been booked and I’m currently preparing for them. I’ve chosen to do this challenge because running is great for the body and mind, fundraising for the charity is a great motivator to keep on running through the winter months, and, most of all, as a CA that has received plenty of help from others over the years in achieving a successful education, I support the work that the Foundation do. I’ve only previously run two half-marathons before now, so this fundraiser really will be keeping me on track to complete the challenge!

I will be fundraising through my ICAS Foundation 25 JustGiving link, with all proceeds going directly to the ICAS Foundation. I will also be contributing and would love it if you can join me. Whether it’s £2, £20 or something more, every bit of your collective support is beneficial and appreciated (and also eligible for Gift Aid if you’re a taxpayer in the UK). I’ll post updates as I go along, so please help me and the other Foundation 25 CAs to reach the target of £25k for the ICAS Foundation, and let’s support the next generation of students to succeed in higher education. Thank you!

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Do you know someone who could benefit from the ICAS Foundation Programme? Applications are open from 1 March 2024. Visit the ICAS Foundation website for more information:

https://www.icasfoundation.org.uk/what-we-offer/icas-foundation-programme

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The ICAS Foundation is a charity registered in Scotland under Charity Number SC034836. You can view further details and the latest annual report on the register of the Scottish Charity Regulator here:

https://www.oscr.org.uk/about-charities/search-the-register/charity-details?number=SC034836