Case study:

How a bespoke Kilimanjaro challenge raised £165,000 for the Down's Syndrome Association.

In January 2025, ambassadors Aitch and Freddie Powell joined a bespoke Kilimanjaro challenge for the Down's Syndrome Association, climbing the Machame Route as part of a closed departure built entirely around the charity. Against a £70,000 target, the team raised an extraordinary £165,294 - almost enough to fund the DSA's Helpline for an entire year.

How it started

The Down's Syrome Association's biggest challenge event to date began, unremarkably, with a booking. Their ambassador Aitch, the chart-topping Manchester rapper, whose younger sister Grace has Down's syndrome, signed up to one of our Open Kilimanjaro challenges to fundraise for the charity.

The DSA already knew our trips from the other side: supporters of theirs had travelled with us on open challenges before.

"We chose to work with Discover Adventure because we'd already seen first-hand the quality of their open challenges through supporters who had travelled with them previously. Their reputation, experience and professionalism gave us the confidence to take the next step and develop a bespoke challenge together."

With Aitch's team planning to document the climb, both organisations saw the opportunity to build something bigger than a handful of places on a standard departure: a bespoke trip, shaped entirely around the DSA and the people climbing for it.

Why bespoke made the difference

A bespoke challenge is a bigger commitment for a charity than taking places on an open trip - the DSA admit they were nervous about filling it. But it gave them something an open departure couldn't: a team united by one cause.

"Rather than joining a standard departure, we were able to bring together a team of people who all had a personal connection to Down's syndrome. That shared purpose gave everyone the same reason to keep going when the climb became tough."

The team-building started long before Tanzania. The DSA set up a group chat where participants, strangers at that point, could get to know each other and share their fundraising journeys, then brought everyone together at their head office for a pre-departure event.

"By the time they reached the mountain, they weren't just individual fundraisers — they were climbing together for a shared cause."

On our side, a bespoke trip meant a departure built around the group, an itinerary shaped with the charity, a leader team picked for the job — Vic and Dr Ellen, two of our most experienced Kilimanjaro crew — and our local Tanzanian team of guides, cooks and porters, partners of ours for more than twenty years.

"We knew we could trust Discover Adventure to deliver a safe, well-organised experience, which allowed us to focus on supporting our participants, building the team and making the most of the fundraising and awareness opportunities. Having confidence in the operator was invaluable, especially for a challenge of this scale."

The ambassador effect

The climb's fundraising total tells one story. What the DSA saw around it tells another.

"Having Aitch and Freddie involved brought the Down's Syndrome Association to audiences we simply wouldn't have reached otherwise. Their support introduced thousands of people to our work, helped raise awareness of Down's syndrome and encouraged many people to engage with the charity for the first time."

Throughout the campaign, the DSA saw a marked increase in social media reach, website traffic and engagement; connecting with people who had never come across the charity before. And the reason it worked, in their view, is authenticity: both Aitch and Freddie Powell advocate for people who have Down's syndrome because of their own family connections.

"What makes them so special is that their support comes from a genuine, personal place. That authenticity shines through and encourages their followers to learn more, get involved and support our mission. For us, ambassadors are about so much more than fundraising. They help raise awareness, challenge perceptions of Down's syndrome, start important conversations and inspire people who may never have engaged with our charity before."

The result

The team set out to raise £70,000. They raised £165,294.

"It's almost enough to fund our Helpline for an entire year — a remarkable achievement that will help us continue providing information, support and guidance to people who have Down's syndrome, their families and the professionals who support them across the UK."

And the story didn't end at the bottom of the mountain: the climb is now the subject of a Netflix documentary, Aitch: Don't Be Afraid, carrying the DSA's work to an audience no campaign plan could have bought.

"Looking back, it exceeded every expectation. The friendships that were formed, the fundraising, the awareness and the lasting impact are things that simply wouldn't have been the same on a standard challenge."

Open and bespoke: how the DSA use both

For charities weighing up the two models, the DSA's approach is a useful one - they don't see it as either/or.

"Open challenges give our supporters the flexibility to choose an experience that suits them, while providing an exceptional experience without us having to organise every challenge ourselves. Bespoke challenges give us the opportunity to build something completely unique around a campaign or ambassador — to bring people together around a shared purpose, create powerful storytelling opportunities and maximise awareness alongside fundraising. Having both means we can build long-term relationships with supporters through open challenges, while creating standout moments that capture public attention through bespoke experiences."

That balance; steady, flexible fundraising year-round, punctuated by moments built for impact, is exactly what a good challenge programme looks like from where we sit.