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Bright Sparks

2014-10-23T13:22:24+00:00

Fraser’s mum Shona had a perfect pregnancy. But during his birth, Fraser’s heart stopped and he was starved of oxygen. Near death for the next 72 hours, he spent the next six days in intensive care. After four more long days, Shona and Fraser were finally allowed home, where her plans for motherhood changed forever. Fraser’s traumatic birth had left him with Cerebral Palsy, a neurological condition that affects movement, co-ordination and sometimes even communication.

Shona had to leave her job: looking after Fraser and his older brother Mark needed all of her time and energy. And although she tried taking Fraser along to mother and toddler groups, she didn’t feel comfortable when he couldn’t keep up with the other children.

Then she found Bright Sparks, a special place where disabled children can play and socialise with other youngsters: its busy building hosts clubs every night of the week as well as during school holidays.

Based in an old schoolhouse in Midlothian, Scotland - wrangled from the hands of the council ten years ago by founder Louise Gough - it’s a small space where magic happens.

Shona instantly found Bright Sparks to be a lifeline: it was there that she met other mums with disabled children and finally felt like there were people who understood the difficulties of her situation. Fraser loved Bright Sparks from his first visit, especially the holiday club, funded by �� Children in Need. He now goes on trips away with his brother, Mark.

It’s something Shona never thought she’d see: Doctors always told her that her little boy wouldn’t walk or talk, but Fraser is thriving at Bright Sparks – both emotionally and physically.

After starting physiotherapy at 10 months, and with the help of Bright Sparks, he’s now walking and starting to talk. Shona puts this down to the positive reinforcement from all the staff, who have boosted his confidence enormously.

“It was such a relief to find Bright Sparks - you think you’re the only person in the world with a disabled child,” she says. “Fraser is so comfortable at Bright Sparks, I see his eyes light up when he hears its name. It gives me strength coming here, and I dread to think what life would be like without them".

"Holiday times are particularly hard, as all routine goes out the window. The Bright Sparks trips are a wonderful help and it’s great that Fraser and Mark can have quality time together as brothers.”

Bright Sparks is so popular that it has a long waiting list for all its groups. It has even started rotating children so everyone gets time at the centre. Thanks to your Heroic donations, many more children will get the support they need from the centre in years to come.

Supporting �� Children in Need, no matter how big or small your contribution, makes a real difference to the lives of children and young people right on your doorstep.

Raising just £2.50 could help supply a special pack for premature babies with life-limiting conditions. And £250 means a child with Cerebral Palsy and his family can continue to have healthy meals by paying for a new cooker after their old one was condemned as unsafe.

Sign up to our Fundraising Hero Hub to access exclusive news, tools and tips that will help get your Heroic fundraising activities off to a flying start!

Run Doonhame 2014

2014-05-06T08:15:13+00:00

On 6 May, a team of runners from Police Scotland are setting off on a 1,000km run to raise money for three charities including �� Children in Need!

They'll be running from Wick, on the North East coast of Scotland, finishing in Dumfries in the South.

At the same time they'll be competing against volunteer runners, walkers, athletes who'll be taking part in 30 minute sessions on a treadmill at a gym in Dumfries!

Just before they set off, Pudsey caught up with Colin, one of the Run Doonhame team.

Pudsey: How has your training been going ahead of the challenge?

Colin: The training's gone well. We have a couple of fit guys who are well capable of the endurance aspect of this challenge. Graeme Scott is a probation officer, for example, but also a former captain in the army and he used to race huskies on a professional basis! But the team otherwise are not Olympians. There have been a couple of aches and strains, but no show stoppers so far.

Pudsey: How does this challenge differ from the one last year?

Colin: Last year was around 450 miles in 4 days and came through the flatter east side of Scotland. This year is more difficult - 650 miles (or a round 1,000km) with six days to complete it and the geography and scenery will be much more extreme. Throughout the route, we take in all four coasts of Scotland. We visit the most northerly, southerly and westerly points of mainland Scotland, we pass through the West Highland Way, near Ben Nevis, navigate the banks of Loch Ness and Loch Lomond and we travel right across our own home region in Dumfries and Galloway. This route is much more remote than last year and this poses logistical challenges in terms of road safety, runner support and overall team comfort, not to mention headaches such as phone and internet connection, and battery charging! We have a support cycle (which I'll be on) to act as support for each runner and provide extra overnight visibility protection behind the runner. We also aim to film more comprehensively to keep people interested at home!

Pudsey: How is everyone feeling?

Colin: I think the enormity of the task ahead is now looming large on the horizon and we are apprehensive about it. The runners are worried about the sheer endurance, blisters and muscle strains and spasms while the support team worry about the logistics and continuity of support through the remote countryside. And everybody is worried about fatigue! This year, we have taken the precaution of bringing a sports therapist with us, who has kindly offered to come along for free!

Pudsey: Tell us about the treadmill challenge?

Colin: We felt that we wanted to include and challenge all our colleagues and friends this year. This is the year that the Commonwealth Games visits Scotland and we want to capture that spirit by encouraging others to get out of their armchairs and get a little bit fitter, at whatever level that might be. The treadmillers are from a wide cross section. While there are many off-duty police officers (like me, keen to lose a bit of flab!), we have other emergency service workers, amateur athletes and sports people, but also just a range of eager friends and relatives who want to join in and do their bit. We hope that they also generate a little cash along the way, as many hands make light work!

Pudsey: Why are you raising money for �� Children in Need?

Colin: The three charities we are running for this year are West Sound Cash for Kids, the funds for which are exclusively local to Dumfries and Galloway, a Police Charity COPS, which is concerned with the Care of Police Survivors, dependents of serving officers who die in service anywhere in the UK, and of course �� Children in Need. So we have a local children's charity, a police orientated charity, which benefits bereaved children, and a national children's charity in CiN! �� Children in Need does fantastic work, year on year for kids in the UK. We know how popular and well supported it is and we wanted to provide people with a way of donating to it through our local effort if they wish to do so.

Pudsey: Thanks Colin and GOOD LUCK!!!

Follow the team's progress on their website. For all news from �� Children in Need, make sure you follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

The heroes of 2013

2013-12-13T17:02:12+00:00

It’s nearly Christmas, and of course that means that it’s nearly New Year! As we keep moving ever closer to what promises to be a very exciting 2014, we can’t help but take the opportunity to have a few little glances back at some of the great stuff that happened over the past year. There's been some true heroes this year, so let's take a look!

First up, a belated thank you to staff and pupils from Keir Hardie Memorial Primary & Nursery Class in Newarthill who raised a very heroic £370 in November by coming to school in their pyjamas! They may have been wearing pyjamas and onesies, but there weren’t any sleepy faces in class as the whole school celebrated �� Children in Need and really got in the fundraising spirit.

Daniel, from the Woking branch of Natwest, got in touch to proudly tell us about his team’s fundraising accomplishments. Having an Pudsey-themed cake sale, the team really managed to ‘raise the dough’, bringing in a whopping £839.19. They must have been some pretty epic cakes! Daniel wants us to say a huge thanks to his team, and a huge thank you to his customers who helped to make the day such a huge success through their generosity. A huge well done to everyone on the team from us, you’ve raised a huge amount of money that will make a real difference to disadvantaged children and young people all over the UK.

The team at Natwest in Woking flex their baking muscles and bring in the money!

Francesca from Countrywide Corporate in Bracknell asked us to give a shout out to her colleagues, who organised a teddy bear’s pyjama-picnic and raised £721.24! We couldn’t resist giving the team a little mention when we saw the photo, which is not only full of keen fundraisers, but also has some surprise celebrity appearances from Marilyn Monroe, Cinderella and Bruce Springsteen (albeit on a t-shirt). The team look great in their Pudsey ears and we hope you’re all very proud of your ace fundraising!

Countrywide Corporate in Bracknell had a great time fundraising.

Another big thank you is due to Brian Atkins and his Alaskan Malamute dog, Shadow. The fundraising pair took to the streets of Leamington Spa in the hopes of raising some money for Pudsey, and they did very well indeed, collecting £300 on one day alone! As Brian himself admits, it’s shadow that does most of the work – he has people lining up to give a small donation to stroke him, pat him and play with him. That's our kind of dog! At �� Children in Need we've already got one animal mascot (the irreplaceable Pudsey), but if the big yellow Bear ever wants to take a break from the spotlight, we might give Shadow a call to keep the fundraising on track!

A couple of final shout-outs before we go – a big Pudsey high-five to Cradlehall Primary School in Inverness, who had a ‘bad hair day’ and a visit from Pudsey, and raised a £414.13, and another huge well done to Loretto Junior School staff who recorded a staff charity CD to sell to staff, pupils and parents, and raised nearly £1000! Both a great examples of terrific, fun and inventive fundraising!

We still want to hear your stories! To get in touch and tell us about all your fundraising, simply email your local address on this page, and tag us @��CiN on Twitter and Instagram or @Pudsey Bear on Facebook. It’s easy. So go, help us celebrate your decision to #BeAHero!

Fundraising Heroes - Scotland

2013-08-16T09:14:38+00:00

In this week’s search for fundraising superstars, we’re heading to Scotland. From long distance running, marathon cycle rides to full body waxing, the brave Scottish men and woman have been busy raising money for �� Children in Need.

Stuart from The Run Doonhame shows off his Gangnam Style whilst on the run for �� Children in Need

Brave is certainly the right work to describe the fundraisers involved in The Run Doonhame. Organised by five police officers from Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary, The Run Doonhame was a 400+ mile dash across Scotland, from Inverness to Dumfries. As if this wasn’t enough, Andy, Adam, Iain, Stuart and Iain opted to run the race in a non-stop relay style. Each officer took rotating turns running ten miles, throughout the day and night, for three consecutive days.

The route was carefully coordinated to visit every Scottish Police Headquarters. The event itself proved to be a gruelling physical challenge made even tougher by some very bad weather. Fortunately, it was a case of ‘no pain, no gain’, and the challenge raised a massive £6,552.

As each officer ran for a separate charity, �� Children in Need receives an amazing £1,638! And to top it all off, the successful team were later invited to meet the Queen at The Royal Garden Party in Edinburgh. Head over to the team’s Facebook page to see footage of the run – who knows, maybe it’ll inspire some more fundraising superstars?

Another group testing their stamina this year are the Shell Twilight Basketball Team. A national youth project, Shell Twilight offers free basketball training sessions, delivered by qualified professionals, to encourage physical activity amongst young people. This year the team have devised ‘Le Tour de Twilight’, a 350-mile cycle around Scotland, visiting every Shell Twilight Basketball location over 6 days, all for �� Children in Need. The ride kicks off on August 17th, and you can donate here. And if you’re in Scotland next week, keep an eye out for some very determined young cyclists passing through.

And finally, we were delighted to hear from Calum’s girlfriend Rebecca, who contacted us to tell us about Calum’s fearless fundraising idea: a full-body wax. This isn’t the first time Calum’s bravery has been tested, however. Recently recovering from serious spinal surgery, Calum has had to learn to walk again. Rebecca told us how throughout this difficult process, Calum persevered and stayed positive. Now he’s back in good health, Calum’s eager to start helping others. Good luck Calum, we’ll be thinking of you!

Once more, a huge thank you to all our brave fundraisers – every penny raised will help support children and young people right here in the UK. If you’ve been busy fundraising, get in touch! Just email your local address on this page to tell us what you’re up to. You can also get in touch on Twitter by following us and tagging @��CiN. We can help you to promote your fundraising and just maybe you could be a �� Children in Need superstar!

Who You Help: Child Safety Week

2013-06-25T09:24:48+00:00

This week is Child Safety Week, run by the Child Accident Prevention Trust, with the aim of raising awareness of the accidents or incidents that seriously injure or kill children.

Melissa, who has been helped by the Child Brain Injury Trust

Keeping children safe is part of our vision and we aim to do this in a variety of ways through funding projects that are aligned with this vision. You can read more on our aims here. Raising awareness of how to keep children safe is incredibly important but sometimes accidents do happen and we fund projects across the UK which help children and their families cope in these situations.

One such project is The Child Brain Injury Trust (CBIT) in Edinburgh which runs a youth group to help teenagers with brain injuries to make friends, feel less isolated and develop the tools to cope with the changes injury has brought about in their lives. Our grant of £14,522 pays for the salary of a part-time youth worker there called Jim.

Melissa was supported by Jim after she was knocked down by a car in September 2009, aged 8. Melissa used to walk the 100 yards home from school by herself. One day her mum, Barbara, noticed she was late home and went out into the street to look for her. She spotted Melissa’s pink bag in the road and immediately knew something awful had happened.

Once in hospital, Melissa’s injuries were so severe that her family was told there was a two percent chance that she would make a full recovery. Amazingly, she did. She can now walk and talk and go to school.

Melissa with her family

But she has hidden disabilities that her classmates can’t see and this makes things difficult. The CBIT has worked with Melissa’s teachers to explain why she has social difficulties and might not comprehend things as quickly as her peers. The Trust also ran a Peer Awareness Session at her school. Now Melissa has joined the youth group and her parents have taken part in fundraising for CBIT.

We fund 12 projects like CBIT supporting children affected by brain and spinal cord injuries, but we also aim to keep children safe from an array of other circumstances such as abuse, neglect, domestic violence or self harm. Child safety can mean many different things and so we will be exploring several projects aiming to keep children safe every day this week.

Scottish projects awarded £130,520 by �� Children in Need

2013-06-14T10:59:39+00:00

�� Children in Need is delighted to announce that £130,520 worth of grants have been awarded across Scotland through its new Small Grants programme!

They will fund a range of children’s activities including holiday play-schemes, trips and youth clubs. These grants will deliver a safe and fun-filled summer for the young people who attend these projects across the country.

Eleven of the new grant holders joined weather presenter Judith Ralston, Pudsey and �� Children in Need staff in �� Scotland, Pacific Quay for an event to celebrate the new awards.

They included Toonspeak Young Peoples Theatre, Scottish Sports Futures, Govan Weavers Society, Pollokshields Development Agency, Riverside Youth Club Glasgow, Women’s Aid East Ayrshire, Coatbridge Parkour, Parent Action For Safe Play, Our Place Our Families Renfrew and Kirklandneuk Community Digital Inclusion Team.

Karen Doran, Children's Support Worker at Women's Aid South Lanarkshire said: "The impact on the self-esteem and confidence of children and young people affected by domestic abuse often prevents them from taking part in activities within their community. Receiving this award from �� Children in Need will enable us to recruit activity co-ordinators locally to assist in the running of our leisure activities during school holidays.”

Amanda Liddle, General Manager of Toonspeak Young Peoples Theatre, said: “The funding Toonspeak Young People’s Theatre has received from �� Children in Need will enable us to run a free theatre project for young people ages 11-25 living in the most deprived areas of Glasgow."

The 18 new grant awards range from £530 up to £10,000.

Click here for more information about our grants and how to apply.

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