Executive Summary
Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity has transformed supporter engagement through the roll-out of their new online donation journey powered by goDonate; most notably with the tailored online donation experience integrated with their St Mike’s Home initiative at Bristol maternity hospital, St Michael’s Hospital.
To support the ‘wall of homes’ on display outside the hospital’s antenatal/postnatal unit, goDonate has delivered a fully integrated and customisable donation platform for supporters to create, personalise and buy a home online, to be added to the wall.
The impact has been outstanding, providing a 660% uplift in donations during their Father’s Day campaign, with a 600% rise in participation.
I don’t think we would have seen the same growth in conversions without goDonate, so THANK YOU!
Leanne Coomber, Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity
Client Overview
Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity supports ten NHS hospitals across Bristol and Weston-Super-Mare, helping deliver projects that go beyond NHS funding. From improving facilities to funding vital equipment and services, their work is essential to local families. At St Michael’s Hospital, this includes improving wards to make them a ‘home-from-home’ for families who are being treated at the hospital.
These services are funded entirely by donations therefore making it crucial for the charity to engage supporters in emotionally resonant ways. This is where the St Michael’s Village and subsequently St Mike’s Homes fundraising initiative stepped in.
Located just a few steps from the wards, the St Mike’s Homes allow parents to celebrate their family and the birth of their babies or remember little ones who are sadly no longer with us.
At the heart of their fundraising for St Michael’s Hospital, the St Mike’s Village is a symbolic wall of houses that brings joy and comfort to families. Supporters can “buy a home” to celebrate and honour loved ones and mark memorable dates, becoming part of this special community. This initiative needed an improved online experience to match the strength of its story.
Requirements
The charity wanted to improve its online donation journey whilst also elevating the ‘St Mike’s Home’ physical display with a fully integrated creative online donation experience. Their key goals included:
- Delivering a more campaign-specific and visually engaging donation journey to significantly increase donation conversions
- Increasing supporter engagement during key calendar moments e.g. Father’s Day
- Creating a bridge between the physical wall of homes and a digital version that is easy-to-use and emotionally engaging
Their existing platform was limited, prompting the move to goDonate’s flexible solution via its ‘Plus’ version; which also transfers the donor data directly to the charity’s Raiser’s Edge CRM.
Solution
goDonate worked closely with the team at Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity to implement goDonate Plus, and to then specifically modified the platform for St Mike’s to provide:
- A visually engaging, on-brand donation journey that reflects the established wall of homes in the antenatal/postnatal unit.
- A flexible framework that helped the team bridge offline communications with online action, supporting omnichannel campaigns.
- Campaign-ready customisation, subsequently allowing the page to evolve with themes like Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
The result is a donation experience that feels personal, purposeful, and connected to the physical environment of the hospital.
Results
To understand the impact, the charity conducted a like-for-like comparison between 2024 and 2025 Father’s Day and Mother’s Day campaigns. All creative, targeting, and budgets remained the same — with the only change being the new donation platform.
Campaign Highlights:
- Father’s Day Campaign 2025
- 660% increase in donations
- 600% increase in number of supporters/houses created
- Mother’s & Father’s Day Campaigns Combined
- 585% increase in donations
- 567% increase in supporter participation
The charity credits goDonate’s platform as the key-driver in converting interest into action.
The Bigger Picture: Giving Creatively, Digitally
Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity’s success with St Mike’s Home shows how charities can rethink their donation experiences to drive deeper engagement and better outcomes.
goDonate’s platform enables them to turn a powerful offline activity into a dynamic, creative online donation experience. A platform that invites tribute giving, community involvement, and a sense of connection that extends beyond a transaction.
This is a great example of how goDonate can be used in more creative ways for online giving. The creative, human-led platform enables tribute giving, blended online/offline campaigns, and emotionally intelligent journeys that inspire action.