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Purple Gunge Challenge

FREE Gunge Giveaway! Could your School, Healthcare Team or Workplace take on the Purple Gunge Challenge for Children with arthritis? Who would YOU choose to Gunge??

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What is the Purple Gunge Challenge?

This year, for our #WearPurpleForJIA day on 23rd May 2025, we are challenging Schools, Healthcare Teams and Organisations to take on the Purple Gunge Challenge to raise vital funds and awareness for the 10,000+ children living with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

So, the question is – who will you persuade to sit in the Gunge-Seat? Who will YOU choose to Gunge??

Could it be your favourite teachers, sports coach, rheumatology team or work colleagues?

How do I take part in the Purple Gunge Challenge?

In order to take part in the Purple Gunge Challenge, all you need to do is:

  1. Order your FREE Purple Gunge* and Wear Purple pack via the link below.
  2. Persuade 2 or more people to sit in the Gunge-Seat!
  3. Set a date for the Gunging – we recommend our #WearPurpleForJIA day – Friday 23rd May – but you can choose any date that suits you before 30th September 2025
  4. Set up your JustGiving page to collect online donations for each of the people in the Gunge Seat – see instructions here.
  5. Gunge day! – The Person with the most donations gets GUNGED!

*We have 50 FREE packs of purple gunge to give away, in return for a minimum pledge of £100.

Set up your JustGiving page to collect donations

By setting up your JustGiving page, you can easily share a link with your community to ask them to vote & donate for who gets GUNGED!

It’s very easy to do – just follow the instructions below…

  1. Join our JustGiving Purple Gunge Community by clicking here – Purple Gunge Challenge 2025 – JustGiving.

2. Click on ‘Start Fundraising’

3. Log in to a personal JustGiving account – ideally this will be done by one of the individuals being gunged – but can also be done by an Administrator who is coordinating the Gunging!

4. When prompted, change the ‘Story’ by adding the relevant names of those who are to be gunged and amending any dates and details as necessary. Click ‘Launch my page’.

5. Under the title and image of your page, you will see the option to ‘Create Team’. Click on this link.

6. Click through the prompts, amending the information – date, location, those who are being gunged etc. – and adding images if you wish.

7. Once published, you now need to invite the ‘Contestants’ who will be in the Gunge-Seat to join the Team!

8. Click on ‘Edit’ at the top of the Team page. Click on Members, toggle ‘Invite-only’ to on and click on ‘Invite Members’ to copy and share (via email or WhatsApp) the link with the others in the Gunge-Seat!

9. Once everyone in the Gunge-Seat has become part of the team, you can then ‘expire’ the Administrator’s page if necessary – unless they too want to be gunged! To do this, click on ‘Edit’ at the top of the individual’s page. Click on Page Settings, then Expiry Date to set the date to today’s date. The Administrator’s page will still appear in the list but can no longer be donated to and voted for to be gunged!

10. You are now ready to go – and should have a list of names of those in the Gunge-Seat ready to be clicked on and donated & voted for..!

11. Before sharing widely, it is always a good idea to share the link with someone else to check the details, check it works and to check they can donate! 🙂

12. When you’re happy, you can share with everyone in your community – invite them to donate, vote and come along to watch the GUNGING!!

13. In the lead up to Gunge Day, keep nudging people for donations!

14. On Gunge Day, all you need to do is mix the gunge, set up the gunge area with your floor coverings and seats, and check the donations to see who should be GUNGED!

15. All your generous donations will automatically be sent to JA-at-NRAS to help children living with arthritis – so there’s nothing for you to do!

Thank you so much for taking part! If you do have any questions about any of the above, email fundraising@nras.org.uk.

If you don’t have a JustGiving account, it’s very easy to set one up. You just need an email address.

If you would prefer to collect in person donations the good old-fashioned way, you could have a collecting jar for each of the ‘contestants’ and pass these around your community in the lead up to Gunge Day! You can then pay in any funds raised online here – Donate Now – JIA.

If you do have any questions about the above, email fundraising@nras.org.uk.

What will I need for the Purple Gunge Challenge?

The Gunge Challenge is very simple – but can get a little messy!

All you will need is:

  1. Your FREE pack of Gunge which you can order here. The Purple Gunge will be shipped separately directly from our suppliers, MessySupplies, and it will take between 7-10 days to arrive. You will receive emails to let you know when it’s on its way! The Purple Gunge comes in powder form, to which you will need to add 10 litres of warm water.
  2. A bucket big enough to hold 10 litres of Gunge
  3. A tarpaulin, dust sheet or towels to put on the ground to contain the gunge!
  4. 2, 3, 4 or more willing ‘contestants’ to sit in the Gunge-Seat
  5. A date for the Gunging – we suggest Friday 23rd May 2025, our #WearPurpleForJIA day this year, but you can choose any date that suits you before 30th September 2025. Be sure to advertise the date so you can gather a big crowd and leave yourself plenty of time to collect donations!
  6. A shower would be ideal – but not always necessary..!
  7. A method to collect your donations – this can either be online via JustGiving or you can do it the old-fashioned way, via Jam Jars with names on..! Pass them around, count up the donations and hey presto, the person with the most donations gets GUNGED!!
  8. One seat per contestant – make sure these can be easily cleaned!
  9. Chief Photographer – what would a Gunge Challenge be without a video? Be sure to share it with us via our socials and use our hashtag #WearPurpleForJIA or by emailing fundraising@nras.org.uk!
  10. Some willing Gungers to pour the Gunge! – these could be year 6 students, heads of house, receptionists or juniors – or you could pull names out of a hat! If they’re relatively short they may need to stand on a chair (safely!) – and then 3, 2, 1….GUNGE!!

The Gunge powder you receive will make 10 litres of MS»Gunge

Mixing Instructions:
MS»Gunge powder reacts very quickly to water; speed is vital once the powder and water combine.

To prevent lumps forming, we recommend using an electric hand mixer but it can also be done by hand.

1. Fill a bucket with 10 litres of lukewarm water and start the mixer, creating a whirlpool effect.
2. Quickly pour the powder into the whirlpool which will encourage the powder to sufficiently
disperse and prevent lumps forming
3. You’ll see the water quickly thicken. Move the mixer around to stir the solution.

If the gunge is too thick, add a little warm water and stir briskly to thin down the gunge.

Handy Tips & Advice:
• Use lukewarm, not hot water. This allows a little extra time to stir and combine the powder with water.
• It’s best to use an electric mixer as this will breakdown any lumps that form.
• If small lumps do form, either remove using a sieve or spoon and place in the bin. Or, using an electric hand mixer, whizz the gunge until the lumps have separated.

You can watch a video of how to mix up the Gunge here.

MS»Gunge is naturally biodegradable and environmentally friendly.

Disposal is quick and easy.

Dilute with plenty of water and pour down the drain/toilet.

To prevent temporary blockages, be sure to use plenty of water when diluting.

If you don’t have a bucket, tarpaulin or dust sheet to hand or would prefer to use a hand whisk rather than your hand, you can buy everything you need for the day through our suppliers Messy Supplies here.

Are you keen to gunge more than one person? Or perhaps you had so much fun the first time around, you’d like to do it again?!

You can easily order more Standard MS»Gunge through our suppliers Messy Supplies here.

How do I Clean my Clothes, Hair & Skin?
Before washing your clothing, remove any excess gunge. Gunge naturally dilutes in water, so the quickest and easiest way to do this is in the shower while cleaning off. Just wash as usual! To prevent staining, wash clothing shortly after use. Do not let the clothing dry before washing as this could cause the clothes to stain.

Floor & Surface Protection:
We recommend you protect your environment by laying tarpaulin, dust sheets or towels. Some surfaces will become slippery during and after use, so anti-slip matting is also advised. If spillages do occur, remove the excess liquid and carefully rinse with warm soapy water and any, if needed, household stain remover.

Safety:
Safety checks before use is advised to ensure all hard objects, exposed electrical points and any potential hazards have been secured. Always supervise children. If irritation occurs, rinse with warm water. The gunge is safe to consume, it just doesn’t taste very nice!

You can download the Instructions and questions above in pdf format here.

Can I download any other resources?

If you would like to let your school friends and work colleagues know a little more about JIA, we have put together a short PowerPoint Presentation about JIA which you can amend and show in assembly or share in a work meeting.

You can also download the Purple Gunge Challenge Flyer to share and entice more friends, family and colleagues to take part here!

We have also put together a #WearPurpleForJIA poster which you might like to download here, add to and display to advertise your event.

How do I donate my funds?

There are different ways you can pay in the funds you have raised from your #WearPurpleForJIA fundraising activities.

Set up a JustGiving page to easily collect donations online. Instructions are above. Any donations collected via JustGiving will come directly to us.

If you collect cash, the easiest thing is to pay it into your own account at the bank or post office and then pay the funds in online by clicking on the link here and selecting ‘Pay in Funds’. You can also send a cheque. Further details are below.

All cheques need to be made out to NRAS, and sent to our office in Maidenhead. So please ensure your school or workplace has this information if they are taking part.

More details below on paying in funds:

Online through our website: The easiest way to pay your funds in online is by clicking here and select ‘pay in funds’.

Online by BACS transfer:  Using the details below, you can make a BACS transfer from your account to the NRAS account.

Account Name: The National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society

Sort Code: 40-31-05

Account Number: 81890980

Don’t forget to notify the fundraising team of your donation so we know to look out for it: fundraising@nras.org.uk

Pay your money via credit or debit card directly by calling NRAS on 01628 823524 and press 2 for fundraising.

Please send a cheque made payable to ‘NRAS’ and send to: Beechwood Suite 3, Grove Park Industrial Estate, White Waltham, Maidenhead, SL6 3LW. Please remember to write your name and address on the back of the cheque.

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