supporting a charity that I have a personal connection to to (eg LGBTQIA+ youth, anxiety awareness, OCD support, neurodivergence)

supporting a local charity (eg Jimmy's Night Shelter Cambridge, Mind charity shop, Wood Green charity shop)

Wood Green Charity shop Cambridge

PROS
I currently volunteer at the WG charity shop on Mill Road so I have an easy and direct connection to the manager (Rob); this means I can discuss donating my project outcome to sell in the shop to the manager while I am volunteering- this saves the hassle of emailing or asking around other charity shops in the area

Donating to a shop rather than an online charity means I can provide examiners with evidence (eg pictures and quotes my manager) of my final outcome- they can be assured I gave the money/products to charity

CONS
I do not have much of a personal connection to the cause and would prefer to support a mental health or LGBTQIA+ related charity

Seems like a fairly easy route to take- could this decrease marks on my final project outcome?

LGBTQIA+ Charities

The Kite Trust

PROS
I have a personal connection to the cause they support

The Kite Trust has run and will be running a Cambridge-based social group for 13-25-year-olds in Winter 2022 so my donation would be helping my local community as well as a cause I love

CONS
The website says the charity is unable to receive donations at the moment and only have a gift aid monthly payment option- I would have to contact the charity directly and see how I could donate

MindOut- LGBTQIA+ mental health service

PROS
I can easilydonate my proceeds online; this means I would have to sell my creations elsewhere (eg Depop, Etsy, etc)

CONS
I can only donate money to this charity rather than my crocheted items; this means I would have to sell externally on an online-selling site- this could be a risk if the items do not sell or I cannot raise enough money

PRIMARY RESEARCH

Interview manager (Rob)and gain information about customer demographic
eg) if more young people are shopping at Wood Green, I will create a product that is more geared towards younger people

(closely linked to this)

additionally, i can ask which types of donation sells the quickest and when- seasonal wear
I can also ask what Wood Green sell at different times of year to make my product as useful as it can be
eg) if baby clothes sell quickly, I can use this to gear my design towards this target audience

which age range will I sell to? who should be in my sample?

I have a friend completing a similar crochet project who could give more detailed peer review of technique

'online focus group' or getting email feedback- quick and accessible to many (especially young people)

Barton Burwash Manor haberdashery shop- I could contact for some feedback on technique and progression with product design- useful after prototypes have been crocheted