BIG success in the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2019
News article from December 20, 2019
We are absolutely delighted to announce that we reached our target for the SHS Big Give Christmas Challenge! Our entire match pot of £7,500 was used to double donations from our wonderful supporters. Together, we raised a total of £15,175. Every penny goes to the SHS Welfare Fund which provides emergency relief for the poorest families we support.
Across the UK today, nine children in every class of 30 live in poverty. This disadvantage is likely to affect their school attendance, engagement in learning, and behaviour. We know when children miss out on basic needs, they miss out on vital days of education. Children without their own bed are too tired to focus in class. Children without the correct school uniform are singled out by their peers – and that’s if they make it past inspection at the school gates.
But there is a way to reduce these hardships and ensure children are in school, ready to learn. Donations to the SHS Welfare Fund allow our frontline staff to purchase essential items on behalf of the families they support. With this practical and simple help, children can attend and achieve at school – and ultimately reach their true potential.
The £15,175 raised for the SHS Welfare Fund can provide:
- School uniform and shoes for 58 children
- After-school clubs for 40 children
- Beds and bedding for 20 families
- Furniture and white goods (such as fridges, washing machines etc) for 20 families
- School travel for 10 children
- Emergency food for 10 children and families
Of course, our fundraising doesn’t end here. The SHS Welfare Fund can act as the catalyst for positive change for so many more families if we can collect more donations. If you’d like to provide practical, fast support to a family in desperate need, please consider donating today.
We met Joyce earlier this year. She’s a single mum living on benefits of just £245 a week. At the start of the summer holidays, she was already facing financial pressure from having to provide a lunchtime meal for her children. Joyce also had to buy new school uniforms for all four of her children. At a cost of £465, this was simply beyond her means. She was really worried and was prescribed medication to cope with the anxiety. Joyce was making cuts to her (already restricted) food budget when we intervened.
Thanks to the SHS Welfare Fund we were able to provide Joyce with emergency food over the summer and helped her with the children’s school uniform. They were all looking forward to returning to school because they felt confident and looked ‘just like everyone else in school’.
We can’t thank our generous donors enough for donating to the SHS Welfare Fund. Thanks to your support, more families will be able to benefit from essential items this Christmas season and well into the New Year.