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Read our latest news stories about philanthropy at the University of York, and the causes we're passionate about.
News

On 19 June the University of York marked Refugee Week with a celebration of the York Sanctuary Fund and its life-changing impact supporting asylum seeking students and academics.

After losing Roudhan, Steven began fundraising in his memory, supporting underrepresented students in science through the GenerationResearch program.

An incredible £9,083 was raised for Mentally Fit York by Great York Walkers, who took on the challenge of walking up to 25 miles for mental health.

The University of York is proud to launch the pioneering new Centre for Digital Innovation in Philanthropy and Fundraising, with the goal of advancing digital technology in the charity sector.

The University of York has been longlisted for the Aziz Inclusion Award, which champions efforts to improve the university experience for British Muslim students.

From 8 to 16 March, York students took on ambitious challenges to raise funds for their sports clubs. With support from 1,800 donors and 523 ambassadors, they raised an incredible £53,892 to help raise their game and make sport more accessible for students!

New education centres aimed at transforming opportunities for young people in Bridlington and Grimsby have officially opened, thanks to a partnership between the University of York, the University of Hull, and education charity IntoUniversity.

The University of York was proud to support five years of championing responsible business practices at the Good Business Charter's anniversary celebration.

The University is excited to announce plans for the Wolfson Digital Archaeology and Heritage Laboratory, which will be a world leading facility where archaeology and heritage is integrated with digital technologies.

On 23 January the University of York welcomed attendees from across the UK to the first Muslim Friendly Universities conference, jointly hosted by The Aziz Foundation and the Yorkshire Consortium for Equity in Doctoral Education.

Thanks to a team of 31 student callers and the generosity of 183 donors, an incredible £107,567 has been raised in the most recent YuCall telephone campaign, which will transform lives at York.

On Friday, 15th November 2024, the University of York, in collaboration with the Yorkshire Macular Degeneration Fund & Hull York Medical School, hosted an engaging ‘Meet the Researchers’ event to accelerate the fight against age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

The University of York's annual Giving Day, held on 6–7 November, achieved an impressive milestone by raising over £322,527 to support students and mental health.

The University of York is proud to be an Official Nominator of the 2025 Earthshot Prize - an ambitious global prize designed to celebrate the best solutions to help repair our planet.

One of only 6 new projects to be funded through an extremely competitive process, this joint project will investigate the impact of flood events on maternal health in two coastal cities: Accra and Kingston upon Hull.

In a heartfelt tribute to Long Boi, the beloved campus duck, a bronze statue commissioned through crowdfunding was unveiled on September 26th in a special ceremony led by BBC Radio 1’s Greg James.

Alumnus Dr Allen Michael Samuels, who recently passed away at age 79, has left an incredible £1 million gift to the University, which will be used to remove barriers to access and enhance opportunities for disadvantaged students.

World-renowned actress Dame Judi Dench has been appointed Patron of the Yorkshire Macular Degeneration Fund, an initiative focused on supporting research into vision loss and blindness.

The Thin Ice Press: York Centre for Print has officially found its new home at the historic Old School House, where it is now open to the public for workshops, events, and much more: bringing centuries-old printing traditions back to York.

The University pays tribute to David Foster, a cherished friend and former colleague of the University of York, who has died at the age of 86.

In a tribute to his late son and York student Roudhan, Steve Beckwith is set to embark on a sponsored walk on Monday 30th July from his home in Holmfirth to the University of York campus. This heartfelt journey aims to honour Roudhan's memory and raise funds for GenerationResearch, supporting paid studentships.

More than £1.5 million has so far been raised to establish a new education and community space 'The Place', offering children and young people of Westfield, York, fair access to new opportunities.

York researchers at the Centre for Blood Research (CBR) are crowdfunding for a crucial study to advance our understanding and develop kinder treatments for a rare group of blood cancers.

The annual Great York Walk on Saturday, 18th May 2024 was a huge success as over 110 enthusiastic walkers raised £16,638 towards improving mental health in York and beyond.

The University of York has been longlisted for the prestigious Aziz Inclusion Award, recognising its commitment to enhancing the British Muslim student experience on campus.

In a grand celebration marking 100 years of enduring friendship between York and New York, the University of York hosted a special alumni reception at the prestigious Yale Club in New York City on Friday, May 3rd.

The University of York and the broader academic community are mourning the loss of Joan Jacobs, whose passing has left a deep sense of sadness across our community.

The University of York recently hosted a heartwarming reception at Derwent College to honour the pioneering classes of 1966, 1967, and 1968.

An undergraduate student at the University of York has won a prestigious Diana Legacy Award in recognition of his social action and humanitarian work.
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From Saturday 9 March to Sunday 17 March, 15 sports societies at York took on a series of challenges to raise essential funds for their clubs and 'raise their game' in advance of Roses 2024.

From February 13th to March 21st, 2024, a dedicated team of student callers engaged in heartfelt conversations with alumni and friends of the university and raised an impressive £136,071.88

Somali-British Activist, Dr Magid Magid, joins the York Sanctuary Fund development board with the aim of making the university a place of empowerment for those seeking sanctuary.

The first wellbeing action day organised by the York for Life alumni sustainability network championed alumni, staff, and students coming together to improve the campus environment.

The virtual event drew together diverse speakers and attracted a significant audience, with nearly 200 individuals signing up and over 70 people attending.

On Thursday, 29 February, friends and alumni of the University of York gathered at the Royal Society of Arts to support the York Sanctuary Fund - our fund to ensure a realistic package of support to those seeking sanctuary.

Our New Future for Heritage Print in York crowdfunder raised £33,310 to create a working press room, museum and gallery in York.

YuPlan, our Will Writing and Estate Planning Webinar was held on Jan 25 2024. This free event is organised by the Legacy Team in the Office of Philanthropic Partnerships and Alumni, and features local York solicitors Crombie Wilkinson.

The BBC's Evan Davis chaired our online webinar discussing two pioneering initiatives the University is involved in: The Place and IntoUniversity, which aim to close the gaps in educational attainment for young people in our region.
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The University of York is thrilled to announce a new partnership with the international group AXA, specifically its philanthropic arm, the AXA Research Fund, and AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM).
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Our latest YuCall telethon campaign has raised an impressive total of £131,881 over a period of just 6 weeks.
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Yorkshire children's cancer charity Candlelighters has partnered with the University of York to establish a new £1m research centre.
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A record breaking £309,476 was raised in York's 60th anniversary year to support students and improve mental health.

Over 70 people signed up to walk or run 26.2 miles at their own pace during York's Marathon Month this October, to raise awareness and funds for Mentally Fit York.
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Researchers at the University of York are part of a new £1.2 million project to support cost-effective and equitable investments for eliminating neglected tropical diseases in southern and eastern Africa.

Researchers from various departments, academics, students, donors, and the philanthropy office united to celebrate the conclusion of what has been a long-term involvement project.

The University of York has partnered with the Saïd Foundation to provide fully-funded Masters scholarships to students from the Middle East.

The first ever York Sport Union Challenge Week 2023 unlocks over £30,000 for student sports at York!
In 2023, the University of York’s 60th anniversary year, we launched the first ever ‘York Sport Union Challenge Week’ to support 10 sports clubs at York.

The Great York Walk 2023 raises £10,000 for Mentally Fit York
Tuesday, 14 March marked the launch of the York Sanctuary Fund at a beautiful ceremony alongside the official opening of the David Kato College.

A record breaking 864 donors came together on Giving Day 2022 to support students and mental health causes at York.

The Great York Walk 2022 raises £22,000 for Mentally Fit York.

The University of York is launching a new education centre for school age children in East Hull, in partnership with the University of Hull and the UK’s largest university-access charity, IntoUniversity.

Thanks to the generous support of our alumni and donor community, the York Unlimited campaign has reached an incredible milestone on its journey.

New ‘Enigma Scholarships’ launched at University of York to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds

Over 750 donors came together to raise the sum on 3 & 4 November, which will support students and mental health causes at York.

The University of York launched The Great York Walk in 2019 to support the Mentally Fit York fund in order to raise money to promote good mental health among the city's communities and beyond.

We are delighted to announce that the University is partnering with the Aziz Foundation to offer postgraduate scholarships for exceptional students from British Muslim backgrounds.

Double Olympic gold medallist Dame Kelly Holmes has urged people to sign up to The Great York Walk and help raise money for mental health research.

Six more undergraduate mental health nursing students have been awarded the York Unlimited Mental Health Nursing Scholarship this term.

Students from sub-Saharan Africa, who have lost one or both of their parents, are set to benefit from a £1.2 million scholarship scheme as part of a partnership between the University of York, Kaplan International Pathways and Ashinaga Association in the UK.

We are delighted to announce that as part of the University’s January Graduation celebrations the Laidlaw Foundation was welcomed into the College of Benefactors.

Santander Universities have been welcomed into the University of York’s College of Benefactors.

Founded in 2008 at the University of York, the Centre for Applied Human Rights’ (CAHR) mission is to support human rights defenders who risk their lives to fight injustice and to strengthen democracy around the world.

717 donors came together to raise the sum on 4 and 5 November, which will support students and mental health causes at York.

A University of York graduate has been selected for the National Finals of the Santander University Emerging Entrepreneurs competition.

The University of York is launching a new partnership with Home Instead Senior Care to begin a programme of high impact research on homecare and older people.

The Wolfson Foundation has extended its funding for PhD scholarships at York

Philanthropic support to the Mentally Fit York fund has enabled the University to acquire an online platform to provide 24/7 mental health and wellbeing support to every York student.

Thanks to generous donations from alumni and friends, we have launched an Emergency Student Support Fund in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our student writer, Eleanor Longman-Rood, sat down with Helen Smith (main image), Lisa Peschel and Aine Sheil to discuss their creative careers.

York Health Economics Consortium (YHEC) has chosen York Unlimited’s Mentally Fit York fund as their charity of the year 2020.

Fundraisers across Yorkshire have been honoured by the University of York who welcomed York Against Cancer into its College of Benefactors.

We are delighted to announce that the Laidlaw Foundation has invited the University to once again be part of this prestigious and socially progressive leadership development programme.

The University of York’s first ever Giving Day raised more than £66,000 for a range of causes, from improving mental health in the local community to funding student scholarships.

An entrepreneurial student at the University of York has helped develop a mobile payment app.

Alum and former Chancellor of the University of York, Greg Dyke is supporting a new research project about the psychological wellbeing of students.
The dynamic new Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity at the University of York will bring together world-leading researchers to improve our understanding of the relationship between humanity and the world's biodiversity.

The University of York has launched the Great York Walk to support a charitable fund that will raise money to promote good mental health among members of the local community.

The inaugural members of the College of Benefactors visit campus over graduation.

AI and robotics have the potential to transform the way we live, travel and work – from driverless cars to assistive robots in the home and in hospitals.

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