frequently asked questions

World Vision Development and Child Sponsorship

What is World Vision Child Sponsorship?

Child Sponsorship is a unique way of giving and a really effective way of helping children living in poverty. It costs £22.80 a month. That’s just 75p a day – less than the price of a daily newspaper or cappuccino. Your money will:

• support vital World Vision projects in your sponsored child’s community and help them gain access to the food, safe water, healthcare and education they so desperately need.
• help that community gain the skills and resources it needs to provide for its people and build for the future.

Of course, this wonderful transformation doesn’t happen overnight. Yet steadily and surely, through the eyes of your sponsored child, you’ll see the positive changes taking place. It’s this window on the developing world that makes World Vision Child Sponsorship such a joyful and fulfilling way to make a difference.

How do a sponsored child and their community benefit?

When you sponsor a child with World Vision, your support allows us to work with the child’s community on long-term community development projects. Your contribution of £22.80 a month is pooled with that of other sponsors to fund essential development projects that will benefit children, families and communities for generations. If you are able to give more than £22.80, we can use this for other long-term development projects, either in the same community where you sponsor or another community in need.

How do we select which communities to work with?

World Vision teams, working together with National governments and other international NGO's, identify the regions and communities that are most in need of the support that will help them break the cycle of poverty. They then meet with community leaders and the wider community to gain a greater understanding of the challenges and the opportunities that exist. Then an Area Development Programme (ADP) is set up and families put children forward for sponsorship.

How do we select the children who will be sponsored?

In all cases, it is the community members themselves who decide who will become sponsored children and represent their community.

How do we work with communities?

We don’t tell people what to do. World Vision works in partnership with a community, establishing together what work is required, and setting realistic goals for what can be achieved. Whether it’s training people in how to set up and improve their small businesses, or in gaining access to clean safe water, education and healthcare. World Vision aims to work with a community for about 15 years, developing local organisations within the community to continue the work without us. World Vision works closely with the communities, from identifying their priorities to supplying labour and materials. Projects - such as improving access to clean water, healthcare and education- bring about long-term changes, which make the biggest difference to children’s lives. Our projects also empower communities to develop their own advocacy skills, promoting and protecting their individual and community rights.

What is an Area Development Programme (ADP)?

At the heart of World Vision's community development work are our Area Development Programmes (ADPs). These are a comprehensive way to tackle poverty across extensive areas, usually including several communities. Skilled national staff work with local people to plan and implement a programme that will last for up to 15 years. World Vision gives priority to helping communities work together to find ways to improve their futures, and particularly focusing on projects that will improve the lives of children.

How many children do you support?

There are currently around 110,000 people in the UK who are supporting over 120,000 children and their communities, through sponsoring a child with World Vision.

How much does sponsorship cost?

£22.80 a month. That works out as about £5.26 a week, or just 75p a day. Your sponsorship will help sustain projects within communities that benefit children - this might be improving access to clean water, healthcare, education, improving household nutrition and child protection. This kind of support enables a community to build for the future and you get to see how this happens through the eyes of the child you sponsor.

Does child sponsorship really help?

Yes. By combining your support with the skills of local World Vision staff and the determination of the communities to survive and prosper, lives are being transformed.
Read some of their stories.

How is my money used?

The money you give doesn’t go directly to your sponsored child or family. That’s because it’s more effective to use the money on projects that will benefit your sponsored child’s community as a whole, at the same time improving the wellbeing of the child you sponsor.
A small proportion of your sponsorship payment will be used by World Vision to address the underlying reasons for poverty. This may include influencing public opinion in the UK, engaging with governments on foreign aid, trade and other development issues as well as activities aimed at protecting children in developing countries from exploitation.

How much of my contribution reaches my sponsored child?

The money you give doesn't go directly to your sponsored child or family. This is because it's more effective to use the money on projects that will benefit thier community as a whole, at the same time improving the wellbeing of the child you sponsor.
Of your donations, 78.3p in every £1 goes to direct charitable activities, with rest being used to raise more funds and for governance.
Click here to see our annual report.

How long will my sponsorship last?

The simple answer is: it’s up to you. Depending on the age of the child, many people sponsor the same child for over ten years, until they leave school or reach adulthood. If World Vision’s work in the community finishes or the child moves away, you will have the opportunity to build a relationship with another child. However, if at any time you need to stop sponsoring, perhaps because your circumstances have changed, you can do so. Your child will still be included within the community projects until a new sponsor can be found.

How often will I receive letters from the child I sponsor?

The cycle of sending and receiving letters takes approximately three to four months. This allows enough time for the various stages required to pass on your letter.

The cycle includes the following stages:

• Your letter is sent by you to the World Vision office in your sponsored child's country
• It is received by the staff in the relevant field or support office.
• The World Vision Team then translate your letter so it can be read by your child or their family in their local language.
• A World Vision staff member delivers all the letters for the sponsored children to the appropriate village on the next scheduled visit.
• The child sits down and reads your letter!

When they have read your letter...

• Your sponsored child can then respond either by themselves, or with a family member or a World Vision representative.
• The response is taken back to the World Vision office, and if necessary, is translated into English for you.
• You receive a letter from your sponsored child! (You may receive the original letter as well as the translation, but this varies from country to country).
• When you receive the letter, you can write another one in reply, right away!

What work do you do in the UK?

To address the long term causes of poverty World Vision works with every sector of the UK community. This includes educating young people, motivating individuals and community groups to take action, working with our government to improve the quantity and quality of the UK’s aid program and partnering with businesses to tackle global poverty issues.