2023 telethon raises over £300,000

As well as connecting with today’s students and sharing invaluable life experience, over half of the alumni the callers reached also chose to make a gift to the College, which is a real testament to the kindness of the Churchill community. It is only with this generosity that it is possible for the College to continue to award over £1m of financial support each year to undergraduate and postgraduate students.

“It’s my pleasure to be able to help. Thank you!” (Dr. Gueye, G13)

Over £155,000 has been raised for the Winston Churchill Top-Up Bursary Fund (before matching) which will help the College to meet the rising need for these additional bursaries, providing £1,000 to £2,000 of extra financial support to the increasing number of undergraduates from the very lowest socio-economic group, for whom the financial aid provided by the maximum Cambridge Bursary (£3,500) is insufficient.

Postgraduate students have also been the focus of support with over £19,800 raised for the Graduate Studentship Endowment Fund (before matching). Increasing the number of Graduate Studentships the College is able to offer will mean that the most talented students can be encouraged to take up their postgraduate studies at Churchill.

In addition, the College’s Class Giving programme gained significant momentum with the 1988-92 Bursary Fund reaching its target meaning that, along with the 1977-81 Bursary, this Bursary will be awarded in perpetuity. The 1995-99 and 1972-77 Bursaries are also very close to their £100,000 targets and the 2000-04 Bursary (the most recently launched) is approaching halfway.

As well as totalling over £300,000 in pledges, the alumni who have been part of this year’s telephone campaign have also unlocked £130,000 of match funding. Renewed thanks goes to our matching donors for this campaign, Dr Tony Wild (G68), Mrs Shirley Kramvis (U72) and Mr Andreas Kramvis (U71), for their incredibly generous support which has inspired and encouraged other members of the alumni community to donate.

The worsening cost-of-living crisis that we are all facing today is increasing the numbers of students who need financial support. The College too is navigating monumental rises in operational costs such as energy bills, but we are doing everything possible to minimise how much of these increases are passed on to our students and to extend how much support we can provide.

We are extremely grateful to everyone who has been able to make a donation in response to this year’s telethon. Your gift will make a real difference to what the College is able to achieve. Thank you.