Incorporate contactless giving into your school holidays: Part 2

First on our list is:

Liverpool Cathedral

Liverpool Cathedral is the largest cathedral in Britain and the 8th largest church in the world! It can be seen from most parts of the city and beyond.

As well as the stunning architecture and historical significance, throughout August the Cathedral is hosting art installations, and a whole programme of free arts and crafts activities during the summer holidays.

If you can manage two lifts followed by 108 stairs, you can go all the way to the top of the tower for some amazing views of the city, it’s 152m (500ft) above sea level and on a good clear day, you will see Blackpool Tower!

The Cathedral is free to enter but donations are gratefully received to help with maintaining the Grade I listed building and continuing with their vital work in the community. Read about how Liverpool Cathedral doubled its contactless donations during Eurovision.

Swindogs -

The Big Dog Art Trail 

in aid of Julia's House Hospice

30 larger than life balloon dog sculptures – the Swindogs – and 42 ‘Swinpups’ have been unleashed across town for the biggest and most colourful event in Swindon. Decorated by professional artists, schools and community groups, you need to put on some comfy shoes and follow the trail to find them all! 

The uniquely decorated sculptures have created the UK’s first-ever balloon dog art trail and will raise essential funds for the local children’s hospice charity, Julia’s House using contactless donation points along the route. You can also use the donation points to get your map.

St George’s Chapel

, Windsor Castle

If you are visiting Windsor Castle, then a trip to St George’s Chapel is a must. Within the chapel are the tombs of ten sovereigns, including Henry VIII and his third wife Jane Seymour, and Charles I, and more recently St George’s Chapel Windsor is where Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest.

The Gothic architecture is impressive, particularly the roof and the Chapel also holds the Order of the Garter, the world's oldest national order of knighthood in continuous existence, with a history stretching back to King Edward III in medieval times.

You can watch Changing of the Guard, visit Windsor Great Park and the State Apartments too. Watch our recent video with Canon Dr Mark Powell who explains how important donations are to the chapel:

Lynmouth Flood Memorial Hall

, Devon

Opposite Lynmouth Harbour is the Flood Memorial Hall. The permanent free exhibition inside includes a scale model of the village pre-flood, along with images of the buildings which were destroyed and how to identify their sites. 

The Memorial Hall and flood exhibition upstairs along with the Lifeboat exhibition on the ground floor is run by a group of local volunteers and relies solely on donations and the generosity of those visiting so please donate what you can. 

Hunterian Museum

, London

If your children are maybe a little older and into the weird and wonderful, somewhat gruesome delights, then the Hunterian Museum could be perfect!

The Hunterian Museum, named after the 18th century surgeon and anatomist John Hunter (1728-1793), reopened on 16 May 2023 following a five-year redevelopment of the Royal College of Surgeons of England’s headquarters at Lincoln’s Inn Fields in central London.

The £4.6 million museum development includes the display of over 2,000 anatomical preparations from Hunter’s original collection, alongside instruments, equipment, models, paintings and archive material, which trace the history of surgery from ancient times to the latest robot-assisted operations. The Museum includes England’s largest public display of human anatomy.

Entry to the Hunterian Museum is free and so donations are welcome.

The Royal Welsh Regimental Museum Trust

The Royal Welsh Regimental Museum is world famous, renowned for its incredible Zulu War collection.  The Museum tells the fascinating story of some of the British army’s most famous regiments.  

This long history, dating back to the late 1680s, is told through many kinds of objects including uniforms, medals, weapons and models.

Another museum that’s free to visit, with the opportunity for contactless donations.

The Museum of Timekeeping

, British Horological Institute, Newark

Who knew there was a whole museum dedicated to timekeeping?

The Museum of Timekeeping is home to a fascinating collection of clocks, watches and timepieces. Inside you can explore amazing exhibits including the watch worn by Captain Scott on his ill-fated polar expedition and hear the voice of the General Post Office’s first Speaking Clock via the original machine itself. Also discover more about early timepieces like astrolabes, sundials and water clocks, as well as lantern and turret clocks.

Based inside the beautiful Grade II listed Upton Hall also explore the grand rooms and grounds. 

Donations are used to create and maintain exhibitions, preserve the collection, produce educational resources and conduct research.

Lymm Heritage Centre

, Warrington, Cheshire

Lymm is a popular destination for visitors at any time.  There’s great walks, and great places to eat, drink and shop, all set in a picturesque village.  But your trip wouldn’t be complete without paying a visit to discover the Lymm Story at Lymm Heritage Centre where you can learn about the village’s fascinating history, with a heritage exhibit that is possibly 250 million years old!

They have 3,000 images and documents online on a touchscreen plus interactive displays about Lymm’s many trades and traditions as well as its unique transport heritage. As a popular family friendly attraction, they have  a free kids’ activity book with quizzes and puzzles that will take you round the Centre and the village. Meet a dinosaur, search for fossils, build a LEGO icebreaker, drive the loco on their ship canal layout, try the floor jigsaw challenge. You can even get dressed up and have your photo taken in the stocks! 

It is free to enter,  though of course they welcome donations.

Milton Keynes Museum

Set in beautiful farmland just outside Wolverton, Milton Keynes Museum tells the story of Milton Keynes pre-1970s before the New Town was developed, through interactive and hands-on exhibits. They will transport you back to a time gone by with a huge range of exhibits, artefacts and stories including a ‘street of shops’ where you can experience, and even smell many shops from the past!

The kids will love dressing up in a hard hat and high vis vest and having a go at operating a Niftylift, which have been made in Milton Keynes for nearly 40 years. They also have lots going on outside; you can pick up a golf club and ball at the museum entrance and make your way round the mini golf course. And when the parents need a sit down and the youngsters are still raring to go, there’s a slide and swings for the kids to play. 

They are fundraising to create two permanent exhibitions and any donations are welcome.

Learn more in our recent case study video:

Holy Trinity, York

Holy Trinity Goodramgate is a hidden treasure. It stands in a small, secluded, leafy churchyard, with the Minster towering behind, tucked away behind Goodramgate - one of York's busiest shopping streets. To visit, you pass through an eighteenth-century archway tacked on to buildings that served as artisans' workshops in the fourteenth century.

The building dates chiefly from the fifteenth century, but has features from its foundation in the twelfth century right up to the nineteenth century. With wonderful examples of local craftsmanship, particularly the box pews and stained glass. 

An oasis of calm in a bustling area. You can take a seat on the outdoor benches offering a welcome retreat from the hectic world outside (not so easy maybe if you have the children!).

Holy Trinity York is part of the Churches Conservation Trust and donations help them look after the 356 historic churches in their care.