Gender-affirming care is expensive, and can cost tens of thousands in exceptional cases. Many trans people struggle to be able to afford this out-of-pocket, which is where fundraising comes in. Here are a few ideas on raising money for your gender-affirming care...

Idea 1: Crowdfunding Campaign

One of the most common methods of fundraising for gender-affirming care is through crowdfunding campaigns. This can be done through platforms such as GoFundMe, where you can set a goal and write a compelling story to encourage people to donate to your cause.

But how do you stand out from a sea of similar fundraisers? Here, promotion is key! Using bright graphics and photos is sure to catch the eye of anyone scrolling past and—when it's safe to do so—sharing with your friends, family, and community is a great way to get that initial boost in funding. Social media is an excellent tool for this, especially for those with large followings already. If a few hundred people contributed £5 or £10 here and there, the numbers can add up quickly.

In fact, this website itself is actually built to promote a top surgery fundraiser! We would be incredibly grateful if you were able to donate any amount, even just £5!

Idea 2: Fundraising Events

Another common idea is a fundraising event, if you have a particular skill—say you're a musician or DJ, for instance—you can reach out to local venues to find out if you can stage a performance. By donating ticket prices to your fundraiser, you can put together a lot of money in a brief amount of time!

It's important to consider the cost to the venue itself, too. Perhaps they can make money off of people buying drinks at the event, or through a percentage of the ticket proceeds. It's always worth reaching out to prospective spaces to ask what they prefer to do.

Idea 3: Drag Show Fundraiser

This one's really an extension of the last idea, but especially within the queer community drag shows can be an incredibly well-received fundraising event.

Why not host a drag bingo night at a local venue, or perhaps put on a concert? Additionally, traditional fundraisers such as running a marathon or bungee jumping can be all the more engaging when they're performed in full drag!

Idea 4: Bake Sale

If you're a dab hand at baking, why not hold a bake sale in your local community? Donating all the proceeds to your fundraiser is a great way to boost you towards your goal; brownies, fairy cakes, and slices of Victoria sponge are all fan favourites.

Why not spin it off into an entire coffee morning? Pulling a community together for coffee or tea over a slice of delicious cake is a surefire way to bolster engagement, as well as providing something nice for people to do on a weekend.

Idea 5: Auction or Raffle

Raffles and auctions are time-tested and effective fundraising tactics. By charging people for entries into a random draw, you can easily raise a good amount of money quickly. Alternatively, having people bid head-to-head for something can result in a larger lump-sum contribution to your fundraiser, but the size of this is usually dependent on the perceived value of the prize.

Why not tap into your creative side and make a piece of art to raffle off? Or perhaps you have something valuable you're looking to get rid of?

Before beginning a raffle or auction, ensure you check local laws around random prize draws—in the UK, you may be required to abide by rules set out by the Fundraising Regulator.

Idea 6: Art Sale or Commission Drive

Here's another one for artists and creatives, why not sell commissions online for pieces of art? There are plenty of platforms online for doing exactly this; additionally, selling a piece of art tends to bring in more contributions than asking directly for donations.

Idea 7: Gaming Livestream

Gaming channels are a great vector for encouraging donations; several online communities can be very supportive, and fundraising livestreams are commonplace.

Platforms like YouTube and Twitch already have features that let users donate, why not go one step further and let viewers directly control events in the game you're playing depending on the amount they donate, there's a wealth of tutorials online on how to do this!

However, bear in mind that some people may be less than friendly, using automated filters, assigning a friend to moderate a live chat, and maintaining a reasonable degree of privacy are key to keep yourself safe online.

Idea 8: Middle Name Auction

Here's a rather wacky idea, if you're looking to change your legal name as part of your transition, why not auction off your middle name? Let people bid for the opportunity to suggest your new middle name, or maybe set it up as a raffle where people can buy entries for the chance to help pick out your new name. One other system is to have a leaderboard where people can pay a fixed price to suggest a name, and others can pay a smaller fee to vote for it; the name with the highest number of votes at the end wins!

However, your personal safety must always come first. Write and publish a clear set of guidelines beforehand that outline what kind of names you will and won't entertain; this could exclude, for instance, inappropriate or offensive names or business trademarks. Make sure you also familiarize yourself with the laws around changing a name in your country—especially around the cost and whether you will have the opportunity to change it again. One compromise for those more conscious about the consequences of letting the general public select their legal name is to only guarantee the usage of the name for a set period of time, like one or two years.