It’s time to take silly seriously and Do Something Funny for Money – Red Nose Day 2024 is here!

31st January 2024

Five young people sitting on a sofa smiling, two individuals wear Comic Relief red noses.
  • Calling all teachers, parents, and pupils – get ‘reddy’ to let loose and Do Something Funny for Money this Red Nose Day!

  • From baking a cake, to dressing up, to wearing Red Noses, there are many ways to take part

  • The Red Noses are available on Amazon with a special schools pack on offer

  • This year’s TK Maxx t-shirt and sweatshirt collection feature Aardman’s most iconic characters, including Wallace and Gromit, Morph, Shaun the Sheep and more!

  • Comic Relief and the LEGO Group are teaming up to launch their popular Build the Change challenge for the third year running

  • Blue Peter will be turning red to celebrate Red Nose Day and schools can join in the fun too

  • Children and families can dress up and party with Bluey!

  • The money raised could help put food on the table, put a roof over someone’s head, and help to protect families from conflict and climate change

  • For more information on how to get involved and access a whole range of free resources, visit www.comicrelief.com/schools-24(opens in new window)

Wednesday 31 January 2024: Calling all teachers, pupils, and parents – it’s time to take silly seriously and Do Something Funny for Money as Red Nose Day returns on Friday 15 March!

Every year tens of thousands of pupils, teachers and parents around the country unite to spread joy, lift sprits, and raise much needed money for Red Nose Day. The extraordinary efforts of nurseries, primary schools and secondary schools have raised millions of pounds and helped to change millions of lives since the first Red Nose Day in 1988.

Right now, donations have never felt more needed. Many people across the UK and around the world are trying to get by in the face of poverty and injustice - being forced to make truly impossible choices, every single day. A donation this Red Nose Day could help to put food on plates and roofs over heads, keep little ones safe and help support families affected by conflict and climate change. When people come together, great things can happen, which is what Red Nose Day is all about.

To help get pupils excited about fundraising and helping others, this year’s Red Nose Day is jam-packed with new ideas and familiar favourites, from baking and dressing up, to tearing up the rule book and joining Red Nose Day’s first ever Rebellion, or even taking part in special activities with Blue Peter, Bluey and LEGO. With all the fun and fundraising falling under the theme of Do Something Funny for Money, there is something for all ages to enjoy, from early years all the way through to secondary school.

A whole host of free resources and fundraising ideas are available online at www.comicrelief.com/schools-24(opens in new window) and here is just a snapshot of the fun activities Red Nose Day has to offer...

Fundraising fun

  • Bake up a wonky, weird and wonderful cake with help from the delicious range of Red Nose Day recipes

  • Think you Nose it all? Put your brain cells to the test with Red Nose Day’s free quiz, think you’re brave enough? Why not make it a parents vs. teachers face-off

  • Dig out those dancing shoes and hold a Red Nose Day school disco

  • Get sponsored to tackle an epic (or downright daft) challenge, as a class or with the whole school. How about a skipping race with forfeits on the way, a dance-a-thon dressed in onesies, or a truly gruelling all-day silence!

  • Got a better idea? Go for it! The funnier the better – because when it comes to Red Nose Day, no idea is too weird or wonderful

Join ‘The Rebellion’ – a day of education and mayhem with a Red Nose Day twist!

Comic Relief is inviting secondary school teachers and pupils to do something completely different to previous years by joining ‘The Rebellion’ and become rebels with a cause. Inspired by brilliant young activists who are fighting for what they believe in, the idea is that teachers choose a lesson to disrupt, set a fundraising target and choose ‘rules’ to be broken. With free Red Nose Day lesson plans available to use, it couldn’t be easier to get involved. Pupils can learn about the power of collective change and the impact donations can have on those facing poverty and injustice in the UK and around the world. Like all rebellions, to make a big impact, Comic Relief need numbers, the more schools who join The Rebellion, the more it’s possible to help raise some all-important funds!

Look the part with our funniest ever Red Noses...

This year’s Red Noses are the funniest bunch with five different designs to collect. There will be four fun characters to collect – as well as a 1 in 166 chance to get your hands on a super limited edition Rare ‘Gold’ Nose. Teachers can purchase a special schools pack which contains 25 Red Noses, featuring a mix of our Gigglesworth, Smirklethorpe and McChortles characters. While our Blue Nose, LOL-E-Pops, can only be found in our Red Nose Family Pack – available for the first time and containing all four characters in one box. The Noses are made from plant-based materials meaning they can be recycled at home, and are suitable for children aged 3 and above. Get your Red Noses from Amazon, the official home of the Red Nose, via amazon.co.uk/comicrelief(opens in new window) or by logging into your Amazon Business account.

...and Aardman inspired T-shirts!

The most cracking TK Maxx Red Nose Day t-shirt and sweatshirt collection features the much-loved characters from the iconic Aardman family. From Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep to Morph and Feathers McGraw, the colourful new range is available for both adults and children and goes on sale from February in store at TK Maxx, as well as online, at tkmaxx.com(opens in new window).

Build the Change with the LEGO Group

For the third year running, Comic Relief is excited to be teaming up with the LEGO Group on its popular Build the Change challenge. This year, pupils are being challenged to think about one of the big issues facing the planet and use their imagination to design or build something that could help solve it . Find out more on this year’s Build the Change competition and how schools can have a chance to take part and win some brilliant prizes at www.comicrelief.com/schools-24(opens in new window).

Go red with Blue Peter

On Friday 15 March, Blue Peter will be turning red to celebrate Red Nose Day and they’d love teachers and pupils to join them by making a donation and dressing ‘red-to-toe’ for the day too. How far each person goes is up to them, it could be putting on ruby slippers, a full-on lobster suit or just put on a Red Nose – everything counts. It’s super simple and brilliant fun. Blue Peter will also be taking on a challenge for Red Nose Day so keep your eyes peeled for more news coming soon.

Dress up Funny for Money with Bluey!

Comic Relief is thrilled to partner with Bluey once again to bring children and families stacks of Bluey themed fundraising ideas, resources and learning goodies for Red Nose Day. This year, children can have a themed party and dress up as grannies or queens – just like Bluey and Bingo! Plus, teachers or parents can put on an episode of Bluey and prepare for dance mode with the help of the Heeler family. To discover more ideas of how to party with Bluey, including recipe ideas and learning resources to help children understand why they are raising money, visit www.comicrelief.com/schools-24(opens in new window).

How donations could help

  • £3 could help families receive healthy, affordable food from a community hub

  • £5 could provide essential equipment to a child with a disability in Kenya, so they can go to school

  • £10 could help provide a day of meals and activities for a child during school holidays

  • £20 could provide educational resources to help inform vulnerable, often homeless children in India about mental health and emotional wellbeing, supporting development of essential life skills and knowledge

Claire Marmion, Schools Fundraising Manager at Comic Relief, offers some top tips for fundraising: “We hugely value all the time and energy that teachers pour into making Red Nose Day as fun and memorable as possible for their pupils. It’s their passion and hard work that makes Red Nose Day a nationwide moment for pupils to unite and come together to make a difference.

“Our three top tips to help get pupils excited about fundraising are - empower your pupils, let them take the reins and be part of planning what you do, see if a friendly local business will match the money you raise, and why not make a week of it to bring some Red Nose Day fun to every day. Whatever you do, thank you so much for helping us to raise money to change lives at a really challenging time for many."

Samir Patel, CEO of Comic Relief said: “Schools have been at the very heart of Red Nose Day since the very first campaign in 1988 and every year we are blown away not only by the tremendous amounts of money they raise but also by their creativity and the joy and laughter they bring to their fantastic fundraising efforts.

“As a parent myself I know the excitement that comes with giving pupils the chance to unleash their silliest selves and so we hope the theme of this Red Nose Day – Do Something Funny for Money - will be a fun opportunity for children and young people to let loose and plan something they really enjoy."

Samir added: “The money raised this Red Nose Day could help provide shelter for those that need it, safe spaces for those in danger, support food banks, and help to support families affected by conflict and climate change in the UK and around the world. Thank you for anything you can do to help more people get the urgent support they need."

To access the wide range of free resources and assets, including bunting, posters, quiz packs, lesson plans and more, visit www.comicrelief.com/schools-24(opens in new window)