Creating a Donation Form for a Local Charity Website

South Kent Mind, a mental health charity I’ve been working with for some time, approached me with a challenge. Their existing donation form, which relied on a third-party service, was proving unreliable. It only supported PayPal, frequently went down, and lacked flexibility—particularly when it came to recurring donations.

They needed a more stable, modern, and user-friendly donation system—one that could integrate seamlessly with their existing website while providing a better experience for both the charity and its supporters.

Recommending Stripe for a Better Payment Experience

After discussing the charity’s needs, I recommended integrating Stripe as their new payment solution. Stripe offers:

• Greater reliability than their previous provider.
• More payment options, including credit/debit cards and Apple Pay.
• Lower transaction fees, making donations more cost-effective.
• Support for recurring monthly donations, a crucial feature missing from their old system.

As South Kent Mind had never used Stripe before, I guided them through the account setup process, explaining the benefits and helping them configure their new payment system.

Building the Donation Form

To ensure a smooth transition, I initially created the donation form on a test URL, allowing us to refine the design and functionality before going live. The new form was designed to be:

• Fully integrated with South Kent Mind’s branding for a seamless user experience.
• Simple and intuitive, featuring donation buttons for £10, £20, £50, and £100, plus a custom amount option.
• Flexible, allowing donors to choose between a one-off donation or a monthly recurring donation.
• Optimised for Gift Aid, enabling the charity to reclaim an extra 25% on eligible donations.

Going Live & First Successful Donation

Once everything was tested and working smoothly, we launched the live version of the donation form last week. Over the weekend, I was delighted to see that the first real donation was successfully processed through the new system!

I then double-checked that:

• The automated “Thank You” email was sent to the donor.
• A notification email with full transaction details was received by South Kent Mind.
• The payment appeared in Stripe and was scheduled for payout to their bank account.

I followed up with South Kent Mind to confirm everything was working as expected, and they were thrilled with how smoothly the new system was running.

Conclusion

This project highlights the kind of end-to-end support I offer clients—from identifying issues with their current setup to advising on better solutions, handling technical integration, and ensuring everything runs flawlessly post-launch.

If you’re a charity or business looking for a seamless online payment solution, get in touch—I’d love to help!