TrikeSanta boosts funds for Acorns Children’s Hospice

TrikeSanta brings Christmas magic to communities in a truly unforgettable way. Each December, he and his team of Elves arrive on a customised Harley Davidson trike - based on a 1200cc Sportster - complete with their purpose-built sleigh.

Touring the local area, visiting schools, villages, youth clubs, garden centres, pubs, and businesses, they spread festive cheer while raising vital funds for Acorns Children’s Hospice, who provide support to children with life-limiting conditions and their families.

Children are invited to sit in the sleigh for photographs, creating memorable festive moments for families and communities alike.

For many years, the fundraising has relied on traditional cash collections; however, as donation habits changed, they noticed more people saying they don’t carry cash anymore. To adapt, they trialled the rental of a card machine, but the experience fell short as it was too small, expensive, unreliable, and the provider proved difficult to deal with.

With more supporters wanting to give digitally, TrikeSanta needed a solution that was reliable, easy to use, and suitable for public fundraising - without losing the visibility and trust of a traditional charity tin.

Solution

For the 2025 Christmas season, TrikeSanta was pleased to discover CollecTin which appeared to be able to solve many of their issues. They went ahead and purchased a CollecTin Solo as this provided the option of a contactless payment device, but in a professionally branded donation tin.

The device was carried on the bike for use across a wide range of locations, including:

•    Village street collections
•    Pubs and social clubs
•    Garden centres
•    Community events and youth clubs

One of the standout features of the unit was its ability to set fixed donation amounts, tailored to each setting. Although CollecTin allows up to four preset donation values, TrikeSanta found that using three created a clear ‘small, medium, large’ choice felt simple and intuitive for donors.

Examples included:
•    £5 / £10 / £20 in pubs when selling raffle tickets
•    £3 / £5 / £8 for street collections

Just as important was the physical design of the tin itself, which allows for the use of branding and imagery, helping supporters understand where the donation is going. 

Results

TrikeSanta’s first December using CollecTin More delivered immediate results with £340 raised via contactless donations alone, adding to the total of £4300 raised throughout December. While the amount seemed modest at first, TrikeSanta was pleased with the result, as it was their first year with the device and they considered it money that they would not have collected otherwise. The CollecTin Solo transformed moments that would previously have ended with “sorry, no cash” into successful donations.

As digital giving becomes more normalised, TrikeSanta expects contactless to play an even greater role in future fundraising, as more people will be used to seeing the device and will use it in place of cash.

Tim Walton, TrikeSanta himself, says, 

“The CollecTin being printed, branded, and having the upright back panel is just brilliant. It looks professional, stylish, and infinitely better than a payment device alone. With just a payment device, you have no idea where the money is going, but the branded tin with logos and images gives confidence that this is a genuine and trustworthy thing. This year has been all about demonstrating credibility and getting a properly branded card machine was a big part of this - and probably did more for us than being interviewed on the BBC.”

TrikeSanta has raised £16,800 for Acorns Children’s Hospice to date. 👏🏼