Swathe.me is a free direct support platform that makes it easy to give direct practical support to someone you know facing daily challenges around an unexpected health or life event (e.g. stroke, cancer, premature birth, MND, cerebral palsy, multiple birth, depression, single parent etc.)

We are based in New Zealand.
Someone can support a friend or loved one living in New Zealand from anywhere in the world by giving to that individual’s Swathe.me card to enable practical help from our preferred suppliers.
Anyone worldwide can make a list to give and receive practical support from friends and family.

Everything we do at Swathe.me makes every day better during difficult times.
We hate to see anyone struggling when times are tough, especially when there are so many people who want to help but don't know what to do for best.
We can make it easy to support someone you know in a time of need, so that together we can make a difference every day.

We are a business with an accompanying Swathe.me Charitable Trust, a sub-fund of the Perpetual Guardian Foundation.  This enables Swathe.me to accept charitable giving and transfer every cent onto Swathe.me cards for specific individuals in need, as well as provide a tax receipt for the donor.  

Charities provide excellent support in the community and we work alongside them as a conduit for additional everyday support for their members facing health and life challenges.

Swathe.me also offers an easy way for people in the community to directly assist someone they know, either financially or practically in person.  This is particularly beneficial for those in the community who aren't comfortable accessing the help offered by charities.

In addition, 100% of all financial gifts via the Swathe.me Charitable Trust are received by the intended recipient along with full transparency around where the donated dollar has been spent and the impact it has made.

Crowd-funding platforms are generally used to fundraise for significant sums of money for a specific need, goal or wish. The funds received through a crowd-funding site are deposited direct into a recipient’s bank account to use as required.

The Swathe.me platform enables smaller cash gifts to be made to specific individuals via a Swathe.me card which can only be redeemed through Swathe.me preferred suppliers for goods or services around everyday practical needs, thus providing greater transparency around where the funds are directed.   In addition, all direct gifts to specific individuals via the Swathe.me Charitable Trust will receive a tax receipt.

Our fees, administration and platform costs are covered by our generous sponsors, as well as agency fees paid by our preferred suppliers.  This enables us to keep the platform free and every cent given to be received by recipients.

From our research, we know people in the community genuinely want to help others in need for the joy and meaning it brings.  They would willingly give more to charity if there was a greater degree of transparency around what their contribution would achieve, where their gift has been spent, and how this will make an impact even if only for one person.

We also found a real disconnect between between people needing help and not wanting to ask for it, and people wanting to help and not knowing what to do.  Swathe.me bridges that gap by bringing the two parties together in a way that is mutually beneficial.

This is done in a number of ways:

1. Individuals are verified by the charity.  When someone makes financial gift to the Swathe.me Charitable Trust, we ask our charity partners to identify which of their members requires additional day-to-day support around their health challenges. We can then help those individuals by signing them up to Swathe.me to receive a Swathe.me card in order for these gifted funds to be transferred to their Swathe.me card and enable practical support from our preferred suppliers.

2. When someone gives direct to a specific individual through our website, they will need that individual's Swathe.me ID which they receive as a Swathe.me member.  The Swathe.me member can either provide their ID to their supporters verbally, or their supporters can see the ID when they signup to Swathe.me to support this individual. This means the supporter will generally know the individual and so the platform ends up being self-policing, i.e. if an individual/Swathe.me member is being dishonest with their circumstance, then they are unlikely to receive gifts direct from their supporters who are known to them.
   As an additional safeguard, and unlike crowdfunding platforms, recipients of Swathe.me card private giving can only use their funds with our preferred suppliers and are unable to use for cash spending.

3. When someone gives direct through our website without specifying someone specific in need, funds will be distributed to active users on our Swathe.me platform with current unmet needs, i.e. those members currently asking for and receiving some practical help from supporters which in effect verifies them as people in need.

4. If an individual's story appears on our website or social media, with their permission, then we have met them personally and known by a charity partner.  Only then will their Swathe.me ID will be available for people to give direct to their Swathe.me card.

The person you wish to support will need to be a member of the Swathe.me direct support platform. They will be issued with a Swathe.me ID which you can then ask them for verbally, or find it on their profile when you signup to Swathe.me to support them.

Then you can:

a) Go to our Charitable Trust webpage and give direct by entering their Swathe.me member ID, and every cent will be transferred directly onto their card.

b) You can sign up to Swathe.me to support someone you know, and then make a payment direct through the private giving page and they will receive every cent to their card.

c) You can contact Perpetual Guardian Foundation direct and make a bank transfer to that individual's Swathe.me ID.

You will be issued with a tax receipt, and all direct giving funds will be held in a secure and separate Trust Account with ASB Bank until they are redeemed by the recipient through one of our preferred suppliers. This Trust account will be independently audited.

All gifts or donations to the Swathe.me Charitable Trust in general, or private giving direct to an indivdiual's Swathe.me card will receive a tax receipt.

However, only unconditional gifts i.e. donations or payments made voluntarily to the Swathe.me Charitable Trust, where there is no identifiable direct benefit to the donor or the donor's family, will be eligible for a tax credit.  Therefore, complete transparency is required by the donor to determine whether the tax receipt is eligible for submission to the IRD for a tax credit.

No. Any direct giving from supporters to a Swathe.me card can only be used across our preferred supplier network to cover costs of practical help required on a day to day basis. e.g. home help, transport, food, childminding.

The Swathe.me Charitable Trust will receive general donations from the public wanting to help support people in the community.  Every cent of funds received will be be transferred onto Swathe.me cards and distributed both via our partner charities and to members on our platform who have unmet practical needs. This will enable people to get the support they need through our preferred supplier network with a Swathe.me card.

Swathe.me is simple and easy to use. Those who are unfamiliar with technology or unable access the internet can enlist the help of a friend, neighbour, social worker, charity, church or family member to sign up as a member of Swathe.me to receive practical support from people who want to help.

Only New Zealand residents signed up as members of Swathe.me are eligible for a Swathe.me card.
The card can only be used with our New Zealand preferred suppliers.
The card is activated and sent out to recipients once gifted funds have been transferred onto it, either directly from supporters, or directly to the Swathe.me Charitable Trust by members of the public.

The Swathe.me cards can only be used with our Swathe.me preferred suppliers in New Zealand either online, over the telephone, or in person where there is an an Eftpos machine.  The payment method depends on the individual supplier and is noted on the website.

The current balance of your card can be viewed on your dashboard when you login to the Swathe.me direct support platform.

Yes, they will expire 5 years from the month issued. Any unused balance as at the expiry date will be transferred to a new replacement Swathe.me card.

Swathe.me is governed by the laws and regulations of New Zealand. 

Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 Swathe.me has to confirm your identity if your Swathe.me card balance ever exceeds $5,000 or if it is topped up by more than $10,000 in any one year.

We welcome this as it keeps direct giving from supporters, charities and fundraisers safe from abuse and ensures that the Swathe.me cardholder is able to use the card and their funds without concern.