Well done to our student callers and thank you to our alumni for taking part in this year’s telethon.
Thirteen undergraduate students came back to College early to work in the 2025 telethon calling team. Between 16 September and 3 October the team was able to share conversations with almost four hundred alumni. As well as gaining work experience and developing communication skills, the students also benefitted from invaluable careers advice from alumni. All whilst enjoying time in Cambridge before the start of term.
“It was great being able to talk to a wide range of alumni from Churchill, receiving advice from people from a variety of careers and levels of experience, which will definitely help me in the future with my own career.”
“My favourite part was talking to people about my subject and getting advice on it.”
“Great to chat with alumni and be able to contribute to my community!”
Supporting students
A fantastic 60% of alumni who chatted to a student chose to make a gift to the College, which is a real testament to the warmth of the Churchill community. We are extremely grateful to everyone who felt able to make a gift in response to this year’s telethon, no matter the size. Every gift makes a real difference to what the College is able to achieve.
Over half of funds raised were unrestricted gifts to the Think Forward Fund. These donations will build the College’s endowment to ensure that future Churchillians can go on to become the innovators and leaders of tomorrow.
47 alumni in their twenties and thirties pledged a donation, and alumni of all ages chose to support the Class Giving programme, which names a full Cambridge Bursary after particular cohorts. Class Gifts allow alumni whose lives were positively impacted by their time at College to help future generations to embrace similar opportunities. Over one third of the funds raised during the telethon were for Class Gifts. This is especially important because the College awards over £1m of financial support to current Churchillians year on year, over half of which is in the form of undergraduate bursaries.
In addition, ten percent of funds raised were specifically for the Winston Churchill Top-Up Bursary Fund. Thanks to these gifts, the College can continue to award up to £2,000 of extra financial support to undergraduates from the lowest socio-economic backgrounds for whom the maximum Cambridge Bursary is insufficient.
Thank you
Renewed thanks goes to Shirley Kramvis (U72), Andreas Kramvis (U71), and Greg Lock (U66) who generously pledged to match new regular gifts and increases to existing regular gifts. This matching promise inspired over half of the 57 alumni who pledged their first gift to the College since graduating to make a regular commitment to the College. With the unlocked matching, the total raised in this year’s telethon is over £350,000, counting pledges for ten years.
Whether through making a donation or taking the time to share a conversation with one of our students, your engagement makes a real difference to the College – thank you.
If you would like to add your support, you can still donate online.
