Sense

For everyone living with complex disabilities. For everyone who is deafblind. Sense aims to help people communicate and experience the world, believing that no one, no matter how complex their disabilities, should be isolated, left out, or unable to fulfill their potential.

Sense's experts offer personalised support through their centres, holidays and short breaks, or in people’s own homes. Sense provides early intervention for children, helping young people access education, and supporting the transition into adulthood and beyond. In addition to practical support, Sense also offers information to families, and campaign for the rights of people with complex disabilities to take part in life.

Our initial work with Sense goes back to over twenty years ago, when Bill Bruty mentored their sole trust fundraiser.  Since that time, the current Manager, Dominique, has been a regular participant on our training courses.  It was a natural progression for Sense to commission Fundraising Training Ltd to review the trust fundraising operation in 2018.  We analysed ten years of income and profiled the donors’ patterns of support, shedding new light on the portfolio.  We investigated over twenty relationships, in order to understand how Sense has succeeded in engaging donors.  From this audit we were able to pinpoint donors who deserved special attention, improve the engagement repertoire, breathe new life into the proposals and equip Sense to set realistic income targets.

“Bill has helped shape my whole approach to trust fundraising – it has worked well for over twenty years and it was refreshing to engage Fundraising Training Ltd and discover fresh thinking.  These ideas have helped to sharpen my focus and given Sense a ‘wake-up’ call over the additional potential income from trusts and how this area of fundraising is strategically so important.”

Dominique Muller Trusts Manager Sense