Everything you ever wanted to know about Brightideas.today …and a load of stuff you didn’t!
Please find below a list of commonly asked questions. If you cannot find the answer you need then please click here to contact us. Our privacy policy can be found here. For all other questions click on the appropriate button below to go to your selected category or scroll down.
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ABOUT BRIGHTIDEAS.TODAY
Q: What is Brightideas.today?
A: Brightideas.today is a new online news magazine. We are a little different to most news media, however, in that we are wholly focused on positive news. We all need to know what’s going on in the World, so we are not an alternative to other news media; rather we supplement it with the items that tend to be squeezed out by the big (and often rather depressing or divisive) stories.
There are still many good things going on around the UK and around the World, things that unite rather than divide us. It is these that we aim to highlight at Brightideas.today.
Subscribers also gain full access to features, big prize draws, e-book downloads, entertainment guides, puzzles and brainteasers, etc. as well as a selection of discount vouchers and offers, worth everything from a few pence to hundreds of pounds.
Brightideas.today is run by a private company (Bright Ideas 365 Ltd) but we are committed to returning all profits made back into the community. 50% of subscription fees go directly to the charities, schools, community projects, small businesses, and other grass roots organisations selected by our subscribers. What’s more 100% of end of year profits, are also distributed amongst those groups. We do not issue dividends to shareholders.
Q: What is the editorial policy of Brightideas.today?
A: We aim to make Brightideas.today a relaxing ‘oasis’, free from the downbeat and often rather depressing hard news of the mainstream media, and without the aggression and anger one often finds on social media. We are looking to position ourselves between the factual approach of the hard news outlets and opinions based social media, with colourful and uplifting stories, that are fully fact checked!
We hope to educate and inform as well as entertain, and make Brightideas.today more than worth it’s subscription, whether a subscriber is with us for features, puzzles, prize draws, or just wanting to save money on their weekly shop.
Q: Who is behind Brightideas.today?
A: Brightideas.today is the trading name of Bright Ideas 365 Ltd, an independent private business. We are not a charity, or a social enterprise, but are committed to giving all of our profits to charity and supporting and promoting communities and community projects.
We are a small team, but draw content from across the UK and across the World. We have no political or religious affiliations, and are just private individuals committed to trying to make the World a better place, albeit in a very small way, without trying to impose our will on it.
Bright Ideas 365 Ltd is UK owned and based. We are governed by UK law and pay UK taxes. You can find out more about our team here.
Q: Am I making a charity donation?
A: No. You are buying a product. When you subscribe to Brightideas.today, you are buying our online magazine. This gives you access to news, features, discount vouchers, prize draw entries, puzzles and brain teasers, and much more. It’s just that we choose to pass our profits to good causes, rather than shareholders.
Q: How much do you actually give to good causes?
A: We give 50% of all subscription fees to charities, schools, community projects, etc (after the banks and government have taken their cut of course!). Additionally at the end of the year we will donate 100% of profits to causes proportionate to the amount of our subscribers that named them as beneficiary (see below). As a private company we have to pay our bills, staff salaries, suppliers, etc. but no dividends go to shareholders or commercial institutions.
We think this compares well with the 22% – 28% of income given to causes by the major lotteries, many of whom make large profits for shareholders.
Q: Who decides where the donations go?
A: Our subscribers do. When taking a full (paid for) subscription, the subscriber is able to choose which cause they wish to support. They can change this later if they wish. Free trial subscriptions do not carry a donation of course.
Q: What does that mean in pounds and pence?
A: At current rates (January 2025) this is normally 76p per subscription per week, plus end of year profits.
We cannot state an exact amount for an end of year surplus, because in all honesty it depends on how many subscriptions we sell and thus how profitable Brightideas.today is. However we guarantee that no dividends are paid to shareholders, all money made over the running costs of Brightideas.today will be split amongst our beneficiaries.
Q: What do we mean by ‘running costs’?
A: Running costs include, staff salaries, draw prizes, website maintenance, marketing, salaries, and contractors fees.
Q: Why run the prize draws?
A: Quite simply the prize draws, like any marketing and advertising, are there to help sell subscriptions, and that means more money for good causes and cool prizes for our subscribers, so it’s gotta be good!
Please note, All prize draws are free to enter for subscribers. we do not sell prize draw entries separately under any circumstances. Under current legislation, we cannot offer draw entries to residents of Northern Ireland.
WHAT ARE OUR AIMS?
Q: What is the aim of Brightideas.today?
A: Brightideas.today has a number of aims. These are:
- To raise funds for good causes (including charities, schools, and community groups).
- To create a news outlet based on all the good things going on in the World that tend to get lost amongst the often depressing news in the mainstream media.
- To provide a safe space, protected from the anger, argument, and aggression often found in social media.
- To help people save money in these difficult times by alerting subscribers to deals and offers that are currently available. These amounting to many times the price of a subscription.
- To entertain subscribers with a lively mix of information and entertainment.
- To provide a media outlet based on who you are and what you care about, rather than what we think you want, and want you to think!
Q: Why did you set up Brightideas.today?
A: In establishing Brightideas.today we were motivated by five factors:
- That the news on mainstream and social media seemed to be so relentlessly depressing. There are many important issues, but we thought people might also want to know about the good things that are happening in the World.
- That many of our important community services such as schools, charities, and community groups are struggling financially nowadays.
- That so much fundraising currently involves gambling in the form of lotteries, etc. Which can create as many problems as it solves.
- How much money is being made for shareholders by ‘chuggers’, and other private fundraising companies, with sometimes virtually nothing going to the charities they are supposedly benefiting. Even the major lotteries give only 22%-28% of their revenues to charities, while making large profits for shareholders.
- That when money was passed to charities by the major lotteries, players have no say in where their money goes.
We thought this was a bit of a shame, so did some research and found that people liked the idea of an alternative that gave more to charities and good causes, didn’t involve gambling, and even let them choose which cause their contribution went to. Hence, Brightideas.today!
Q: Many people are struggling to pay their bills, how can they justify subscribing to Brightideas.today?
A: When compiling our deals and discounts we are very aware that not everyone will have the same level of income. This is why we aim to offer subscribers more than their weekly subscription in discounts for the basics such as food and utilities, as well as discounts on larger purchases such as holidays and designer giftware. Our aim will always be to make sure Brightideas.today subscribers can receive considerably more in discounts that the cost of their subscription.
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Q: What types of subscription are there?
A: There are currently two types of subscription available, weekly and annual. More details on these can be found here.
Q: Can I try Brightideas.today for free?
A: Yes. A free 28-day trial is available without obligation. You do not need to enter credit or debit card information to access the trial. You can find out more and take a free trial here.
USING THE WEBSITE
Q: What are the terms and conditions of using the website?
A: A full list of terms and conditions are available here.
THE PRIZE DRAWS
Q: How do I enter a prize draw?
A: It’s easy. Once subscribed and signed in:
- Select and click on the prize draw you wish to enter from our prize draw section.
- Type in your username, click ‘Enter’.
- Cross your fingers!
…and that’s it, why not take a look around now and see what you could win.
Q: Why aren’t your prizes as big as the national lotteries?
A: Cos they’ve got more money than us! Also, our research showed that people would prefer slightly smaller prizes if they had a decent chance of winning. For this reason we have set limits on the number of entries for each draw so we can make sure you have a much better chance of winning than in national competitions and lotteries.
For some draws we’ve deliberately gone for unusual prizes which you cannot buy in the shops.
Q: Do you publish a list of winners?
A: Yes, a list of all prize winners can be found on our ‘Past Winners’ page.
LEGAL INFORMATION
Q: What is the legal status of Brightideas.today?
A: Brightideas.today is a brand name of Bright Ideas 365 Ltd, a private limited company registered in England and Wales (Company Number 7975287).
Our registered office is at: 61 Bridge Street, Kington, Herefordshire, HR5 3DJ.
We are governed by UK law, pay UK taxes, and have no overseas parent company or subsidiaries.
THE CAUSES WE SUPPORT
Q: Which causes do you support?
A: When a subscriber takes out their Brightideas.today subscription they are invited to enter the name of the organisation that they would like to benefit from their subscription. This can (with a small number of exceptions) be any organisation that is not for profit and for the benefit of the community. A list of eligible types of organisation (and exceptions) can be found here.
Q: Do you have formal links with any of the organisations that you donate profits to?
A: In order to remain completely impartial we maintain no formal links, other than that of donor and recipient (though of course financial records, etc. are maintained).
Q: Do all subscriptions have to support a good cause?
A: Yes, all subscriptions must support a good cause. This can be a charity, school, church, community group, or any organisation that is not for profit, but is for the benefit of the community. If you are unsure who you’d like to benefit from your subscription, you can find some suggestions here.
Q: How can my charity, school, or community group, earn money from Brightideas.today?
A: Just let supporters know about us (and the free trial) through your usual communication channels. If they then subscribe to Brightideas.today, and name your organisation as beneficiary, it gets 50% of the subscription fee (after VAT and payment processor fees), plus a proportionate share of our end of year profits. It’s as simple as that!
It is important to remember that this is not a case of asking for a donation (you would naturally ask for those directly), we are selling a high value product (the discount vouchers alone are to a far higher value than the subscription fee) that just happens to be donating it’s profits to good causes.
Payments to your organisation will be made be made by BACS (or cheque of required) every 28 days (annual profit shares are paid at the end of the financial year).
Q: Is there a maximum amount an organisation can receive?
A: No.
Q: Is there a minimum amount an organisation can receive?
A: No. But where a payment does not reach the minimum payment threshold for any given month, this will be carried over to the next.
Q: Can I suggest a charity or community project I know or work with to be a beneficiary of a Brightideas.today?
A: There’s no need to let us know, if the organisation is eligible, just let them know about us (as above). A full list of eligible organisation types can be found here.
Businesses can support their favourite charity by letting customers know about us. They can also register for a code, which when used directs the usual share of income to that organisation. This then allows us to let that business know exactly how much money has been raised by their customers (though information on individuals will not be shared).
INCLUSIVITY
Q: What is your inclusivity policy?
A: Our policy is one of universal inclusivity, applying both to our subscribers and contributors. We do not condone discrimination against any group or individual, and seek to promote trust and awareness both within and outside our organisation.
No organisation is perfect, and where there is suspicion that we have fallen short of reasonable expectations in this area we commit to investigate, and take appropriate action.
We welcome input from our team, our contributors, and our subscribers on this, and all aspects of Brightideas.today.
Q: Why do you not feature Black History Month, Pride Month, Disability History Month, or Women’s History Month? Do you not believe that these are important?
A: We wish to be very clear from the outset that we strongly believe that all minority and marginalised groups have a right to have their contributions fully acknowledged; and as this isn’t always possible in the mainstream, a dedicated event is perhaps the best way to do it. We fully support the principle of these events and those that organise them.
So why do we not run a month long feature for each of them at Brightideas.today? This is based on capacity, rather than ideology. With only twelve months in a year, a maximum of twelve such events can be adequately observed (some overlap reducing this further). There are of course, considerably more than twelve minority and social groups. So in order to accommodate as many as possible without discrimination or favour, we offer a year round ‘open house’ for material. This means that there is no limit on who can find a voice, with an equal level of exposure.
However, should any contributor wish to have their work published in a specific period, then our policy is to publish it at the requested time wherever possible. So for example a feature on a prominent woman in history, will be published in Women’s History Month if the contributor requests this.
Our editorial policy is to judge all material on suitability for publication (our editorial policy can be found here) and merits, irrespective of the contributors background. We do not record the disability, gender, ethnic, or socio-economic, background of contributors, for reasons of privacy, though this may be apparent of course, from their name or the content they provide.
Live events, parades, etc. related to any section of the community can also be listed in our ‘Events’ diary* at any time, as long as they are for entertainment and communal sharing. Demonstrations, political rallies, etc. cannot be listed. If you are promoting a suitable event please send details for publication to us here.
Q: Do you have material aimed at specific members of the community?
A: Brightideas.today is subject based and we do not prescribe to readers or profile what should be of interest. For this reason we have moved away from the tradition news media approach of a ‘womens’ section or a motoring section aimed at men. We aim to make all areas of Brightideas.today accessible to all.Cars are no longer purely the domain of young men, in the same way that wellbeing is no longer an exclusively female issue. The same applies to ethnic groups or any other part of the community. Our subscribers and contributors will, we hope be a single vibrant and diverse group, that share one thing, positivity.
Q: Is material from all sections of the community welcome?
A: In a word, yes. We invite light hearted and uplifting news and features from anyone over the age of 15 years. Of course, we cannot guarantee the mix that we will have at any given time, because we do not know what material will be sent to us, but we do guarantee that we do not allow the socio-ethnic background of the person submitting it to influence whether it appears or not. Material is normally editorially reviewed on it’s own merits without knowledge of the contributor that has submitted it.
All original submissions that fully comply with our editorial policy (which can be found in full here) and are of sufficient quality have an equal chance of publication. There is no upper limit to the amount of news items or press releases that can be featured or submitted (features are limited by website capacity and our total budget), so no group can be squeezed out by another. If you feel your community is not represented and you have a suitable news item to submit, then please submit it.
Q: What sort of material is suitable for publication?
A: Our editorial policy is summed up by our tagline ‘…and now the good news!’ Meaning that all material that we publish must be fairly light-hearted, positive, and uplifting. As part of this we aim to celebrate people from all sections of the community that have made a difference, whether they be historic figures or are largely unknown.
Full details of our editorial policy can be found here. The editors decision in all matters of content is final.
So whatever your age, socio-economic, ethnic, or any other background, we hope you will help us to celebration of the UK’s diverse culture 365 days of the year. As with all aspects of Brightideas.today, our inclusivity policy is constantly under review, and we invite comment. Where appropriate, subscriber polls may be used to guide any changes to this.
CONTACT US
We hope you found the answers to your questions above. If not you can contact us here.