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Publication date: April 2026

We’re excited that you’re interested in joining #TeamAcorns for the TCS London Marathon 2027. Please carefully review the following terms and conditions. These establish the agreement between you and Acorns Children’s Hospice (“Acorns”) for your participation in this event. They replace our standard events terms and conditions for charity place participants.

If you need these in a different format or have any questions, please contact the team by email on events@acorns.org.uk.

1. General

  1. By applying to run the TCS London Marathon 2027 with Acorns, you agree that we can contact you about your participation in this event by phone, text message, email, post, or other digital communication platforms (for example, Microsoft Teams or WhatsApp).
  2. You acknowledge that participation in the event is at your own risk. You understand that Acorns is not responsible for the organisation, management or operation of the event and accepts no liability for any loss, injury or damage arising from your participation, except where caused by Acorns negligence.
  3. You understand that this event is organised by a third-party event organiser, London Marathon Events (“the Event Organiser”). The Event Organiser is solely responsible for the conduct and operation of the event, including all health and safety requirements.
  4. You agree not to do anything which may bring the Acorns name into disrepute.
  5. You accept that Acorns reserves the right to change, amend or alter these Terms and Conditions at any time. The most recent version of these Terms and Conditions will be posted on our website and made available upon request.

2. Your participation

  1. You must meet the minimum age of 18 on race day to participate in the event.
  2. You understand that we use a pre-determined selection process to allocate our charity places. All selection decisions are final and are made in the best interests of Acorns.
  3. Once offered a charity place with Acorns, you must pay a registration fee of £100 to secure your charity place. The registration fee is non-refundable and non-transferable in all circumstances.
  4. Acorns retains full control over its TCS London Marathon 2027 charity places and may withdraw your charity place at any time if necessary, acting reasonably. For example, if fundraising milestones are not met, if you fail to respond to communications, or if we become aware of unlawful or unethical fundraising methods. We will inform you of our concerns and attempt to resolve the situation where possible.
  5. You are responsible for covering your own travel and accommodation expenses to participate in the event. You acknowledge that Acorns cannot contribute to these costs. Acorns is not liable for them if your charity place offer is withdrawn at a later date.

3. Health, including fitness and injury

  1. You confirm that, to the best of your knowledge, your general state of health and fitness is good. You commit to seeking medical advice prior to the event if necessary.
  2. You take responsibility for letting the Event Organiser know of any medical conditions or circumstances which might affect your taking part. This is so that they can best assist you.
  3. You agree that Acorns will not be liable for any accident, injury or illness sustained as a result of your participation, except where caused by Acorns negligence.
  4. You agree to take full responsibility for your training. Acorns offers access to training resources on the Coopah app to support you. Use of these resources is optional.
  5. You agree to follow all safety instructions and training procedures, as issued by the event organisers, when taking part to enjoy a safe and fun event.

4. Deferral and withdrawal

  1. All charity place deferrals are at Acorns discretion and are not guaranteed.
  2. If you wish to withdraw from the event, you must notify Acorns by email at events@acorns.org.uk as soon as possible.
  3. Should you become injured during your training for the event and feel that you are not going to be able to take part on the day, Acorns will endeavour to defer your charity place to the next TCS London Marathon. This is not guaranteed and can only be done once.
  4. If we agree to offer you a deferral to the following year, the fundraising milestone in place at the point of deferral must have been met.
  5. Should you defer your charity place, your Minimum Fundraising will be updated to match the Minimum Fundraising for the year you are deferring to.
  6. Any money you may have already raised will also be rolled over to count towards your fundraising total next time. But you may need to pay a registration fee for the next year’s TCS London Marathon on top of that.
  7. If we agree to defer your charity place in the event, we will remove you from Acorns email updates about the TCS London Marathon 2027.
  8. If you cross the TCS London Marathon 2027 start line but do not cross the finish line, you will still need to raise the Minimum Fundraising.
  9. If you drop out, withdraw or defer, you cannot allocate your charity place to someone else. The place is returned to Acorns.
  10. If you withdraw from the event, Acorns will remove you from all our communications about the TCS London Marathon 2027. This includes emails and #TeamAcorns groups on WhatsApp or Strava. We will also de-activate your code allowing free access to the Coopah app for training if one was given to you.

5. Fundraising

  1. “Minimum Fundraising” means £2,600 excluding Gift Aid.
  2. All funds raised for Acorns through the TCS London Marathon 2027 will be made payable to Acorns.
  3. By accepting an Acorns charity place in the TCS London Marathon 2027, you agree to raise a minimum of £2,600 (excluding Gift Aid) and adhere to various milestones set out below.
  4. If you are not a UK-resident, you agree to meet the Minimum Fundraising target and milestones in Pounds Sterling (GBP or £).
  5. These milestones (excluding Gift Aid) are as follows:
  • £650 (25%) by 15 September 2026
  • £1,300 (50%) by 15 November 2026
  • £1,560 (60%) by 15 January 2027
  • £2,080 (80%) by 15 March 2027
  1. All remaining fundraising must be paid to Acorns by 16 May 2027. If the Minimum Fundraising has not been met by this date, you agree to pay the outstanding balance to Acorns within 14 days of a written request from Acorns.
  2. Failure to meet a fundraising milestone may result in the withdrawal of your charity place at Acorns discretion.
  3. Acorns will regularly review your fundraising progress. We may withdraw your charity place if we determine that you are not committed to raising the full sponsorship amount. This is so that the charity place can be re-allocated to someone on our waiting list. The Acorns Events team will be in regular contact with you to support your fundraising efforts to minimise this risk.
  4. You understand that Gift Aid is not included in your Minimum Fundraising. The money raised from Gift Aid is a valuable bonus for Acorns.
  5. You understand that any existing regular donations which you make to Acorns do not form part of your fundraising total.
  6. We welcome match funding and are happy to support you in securing it from your employer as needed. Match funding will only be included in your total if received by the milestone date, unless agreed otherwise with the Acorns Events team.
  7. You agree to keep Acorns updated with your fundraising progress and regularly pass on any monies raised to Acorns. Monies collected can be transferred to Acorns via bank transfer (BACS) or your online fundraising page.
  8. You agree to only use legal means to fundraise and comply with any fundraising guidance or advice issued by Acorns.
  9. You commit to return any unused Acorns fundraising materials, including sponsorship forms, to Acorns on completion of your fundraising activities.
  10. You agree to only use the ‘in aid of Acorns logo to create your own materials. You will not use the Acorns logo in any other way, unless by written agreement with the Acorns Events team.
  11. You agree that your sponsorship forms and online fundraising pages will make it clear that the money is not given subject to any conditions and that the monies will not be returned if the TCS London Marathon 2027 is cancelled, your charity place is withdrawn, or you do not complete the TCS London Marathon 2027.
  12. Acorns will consider refunding money raised only at the individual donor’s request. This is not guaranteed and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Anyone wishing to request a refund should contact events@acorns.org.uk no later than 28 days from the date of the donation. Refunds will not be issued automatically.

6. Data protection, including images and audio

  1. You agree to Acorns storing the information that you provided on its database.
  2. You agree that Acorns may share your details with third parties to support your participation in the TCS London Marathon 2027. This includes the Event Organiser and any service providers authorised to act on Acorns behalf. For example, the email marketing platform, Dot Digital.
  3. You allow Acorns to use any quotes, photographs or videos from the TCS London Marathon 2027 in future materials to raise awareness or money for Acorns. This can include, but not be limited to, marketing material, television broadcasts, social media, advertising, publications, and other documents that may be made available to the public.
  4. Any photographs or video footage that you share with us may be shared on our website, social networks and/or used in marketing materials – this may include photographs of your friends and family should you share these with us.
  5. Photographs of children will not be used in this manner without express written consent unless the images are incidental. For example, children’s images at the starting line.
  6. If you would prefer that your quotes, photographs or videos are not used in the ways described above, please contact the Acorns Events team.

Our promise to you

In return for taking part in the TCS London Marathon 2027 with #TeamAcorns, Acorns makes the following commitments:

  • We will regularly communicate with you as part of your London Marathon preparation journey.
  • We will provide you with expert fundraising support from our team and training support from our training partner, Coopah.
  • We will be there to help you reach your fundraising milestones by giving you a range of ideas, resources and support.
  • We will aim to keep TCS London Marathon-related administrative costs to a minimum.
  • We will take all feedback seriously and deal with any complaints promptly and fairly.
  • We will say thank you for your support and keep you up to date with news about our work (unless you don’t want us to).
  • We do not sell or swap your details with any third parties. But to carry out our work we may need to pass your details to service companies authorised to act on our behalf. For further information about how we collect and use personal data, please refer to our Privacy Policy.

These Terms and Conditions constitute the entire agreement between you and Acorns in relation to your participation in the TCS London Marathon 2027 and supersede any prior agreements or representations. These Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.