Free the fundraisers

Bowel Cancer UK
Verbal and visual identity

Helping Bowel Cancer UK put the ‘fun’ in fundraising. (Sorry.)

A woman in a turquoise hoodie is pulling up her sleeves and standing against a bright yellow background with a zigzag pattern. There is a graphic of a weight with '8KG' written on it next to her, and large, playful, black text that says 'Raise your game'.

What we did

Tone of voice
Naming
Design
Illustration
Templates
Visual identity
Brand guidelines

Brand guidelines: one document to rule them all. Right? Well… mostly. There needs to be some flex, depending on what you’re talking about, where, and who to. In the charity world, it’s the fundraising team who often have the most freedom to push their brand to the max. But how do you do it?

This was our brief from Bowel Cancer UK.

Create a verbal and visual extension specifically for the fundraising team, that’s more playful, engaging and exciting. This was the time to be bold, following the legacy of the incredible Dame Deborah James.

A collage of four turquoise banners with white and dark blue text promoting Bowel Cancer UK Walks. The banners display the walk dates: April 15, Swim 5, and activities for April. Each banner has a patterned background with various dashed, wavy, and paw print designs.

“Working with Lark was an absolute dream – the team took the time to understand us, our branding and our briefs, and we were absolutely blown away by the end products that were delivered.

“Lark helped us to stay true to our identity, and developed the look and sound of our work in ways that meant – at the end of every catch-up meeting – there were smiles across the board from all of my colleagues.”

Becca Roe, creative and content manager

A person in a blue shirt performing a yoga pose on a black mat with a yellow zigzag background. The image includes the words "Stretch yourself this April" in large, colorful letters.

Collection of icons including a running shoe, a person walking a dog in a stroller, a potted plant, and a cup with a mask in front of it, all on a colorful background.

Over on the visual side, we needed to create an event ‘family’; four different strands that each felt distinct, but related. We started with three concepts, each pushing the ‘energy’ a little further, to help the charity find the sweet spot that felt just right for them.

With the chosen route, we created logos, backgrounds, icons, editable templates, and a new event name. Everything summarised and explained in a neat brand guidelines document.

The new brand identity is bright, bold and bouncing with energy, giving the fundraising team everything they need to dial up the inspiration – while still staying on-brand and on-message.

Screenshot of a website homepage for Bowel Cancer UK showing an active April campaign with a young woman holding a kettlebell, encouraging bowel cancer awareness and donations.

Two colorful posters supporting bowel cancer awareness. The left poster features a man jumping on a trampoline with a yellow zigzag background and the text 'Spring into Action!' in large blue letters, noting a donation of £10 to Bowel Cancer UK. The right poster shows a person wearing glasses with the words 'Make a Splash' inside a yellow semicircle, with a teal wave background, indicating a donation of £10 and the theme 'Swim 15'.

We weren’t reinventing the wheel. We already had the charity’s values and core visual identity to keep as our base.

For the verbal guidelines, we focused on the fundraising USP being ‘energy’. So we used a scale – Muted, Neutral and Amplified – with example copy to show when to dial it down and when to go wild. And to finish? Eight golden writing rules to give any content creator a confidence boost.

Three smartphone screens displaying social media posts about Bowel Cancer UK activities like swimming, active April, and walk together events.

Two women hugging and smiling at a walk to end Alzheimer's event, wearing teal shirts, with other participants in the background.

Free the fundraisers

What we did

Brand guidelines: one document to rule them all. Right? Well… mostly. There needs to be some flex, depending on what you’re talking about, where, and who to. In the charity world, it’s the fundraising team who often have the most freedom to push their brand to the max. But how do you do it?

“Working with Lark was an absolute dream – the team took the time to understand us, our branding and our briefs, and we were absolutely blown away by the end products that were delivered.

“Lark helped us to stay true to our identity, and developed the look and sound of our work in ways that meant – at the end of every catch-up meeting – there were smiles across the board from all of my colleagues.”

More work

Brand awareness campaign

Education and advocacy campaign