About the author

Jax Jones never set out to be a fundraiser. She started in events, freelancing for eight years in event production, predominantly working with major UK festivals such as Glastonbury, Big Chill, Isle of Wight Festival and Bestival, alongside running her own part-time business and raising two boys.

Just before the 2014 season, she took a temporary role at the local hospice, Mountbatten Isle of Wight, as a part-time events assistant. It was only supposed to be for a month. Six years on and Jax now looks after legacies, lottery, regular giving, direct mail and in-memory giving in her role as Individual Giving Fundraiser, responsible for generating £2.7m of income annually. She reached Individual Giving via five years in Major Events Fundraising, where she led a 250+ strong team of staff, volunteers, sponsors and supporters to organise the Isle of Wight’s biggest annual fundraising event, and Europe’s largest sponsored walk, Walk the Wight. The event attracts over 8,000 people to walk four different routes across 34.5 miles of the Island’s stunning countryside, raising around £250,000 each year to support Island people through death, dying, and bereavement.

Recognising the opportunities in Individual Giving as a significant growth area for Mountbatten, Jax jumped at the chance to move away from mass participation events to stewarding individuals and maximising the lifetime value of donors. She has a particular interest in fundraising communications and tries to avoid ‘navel-gazing’ wherever possible.