Purple Pennies: Vote for meaningful causes that matter to you

03 Feb 2026

Voting now open

All colleagues can now vote for two new causes to be supported by Purple Pennies for the next 2 years, the easiest way for colleagues to make a big difference through small action as part of our Challenge Accepted campaign.

Click here to vote

The vote will close on Friday, 20 February, with the winning causes announced a week later.

What is Purple Pennies? 

Each month, the pennies from the end of your payslip are donated through our micro-donation scheme, Purple Pennies. You’ll never donate more than 99p and, over time, these small contributions will make a significant impact. This is just one way you can get involved with our university’s fundraising and volunteering campaign: Challenge Accepted, which helps deliver real-world change through collective action.

Since launching in 2023, Purple Pennies has helped to raise thousands of pounds to support Wood Street Mission, Manchester’s cancer research and Manchester students.

Who can I vote for?

Our university causes represent the core challenges that make up Challenge Accepted, and are:

• Culture and community – Power creativity and inclusion through our world-class cultural institutions. With your support we’ll broaden access, grow our collections and drive social change.
• Innovation and enterprise – Help fuel our ambition to become Europe's most inclusive and impactful innovation network – turning ideas into impact faster.
• Research with purpose – With your support, we can tackle society's hardest problems and deliver impact faster, at greater scale.
• Student inclusion and success – Your support will unlock potential and fuel ambition in students facing real obstacles to getting to our University – and thriving once they do.

We also have 4 local charities available to vote for:

• 42nd Street – Providing free and confidential services to young people who are experiencing difficulties with their mental health and emotional wellbeing.
• Booth Centre – Creating positive change in the lives of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, helping them plan for and realise a better future. 
• Manchester Women's Aid – Supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse by providing refuge, community-based support and safe spaces.
• Once Upon a Smile – Providing practical and emotional support to bereaved families to enable them to adjust to a new life without their loved one.

Further information

• It’s payroll giving month! Check out all the ways you can support a good cause through your payroll, with our Purple Giving site.
• If you wish to continue supporting our previous Purple Pennies charities, you can do so via our payroll giving scheme Purple Pounds