Only 24 hours to go!!
we can make it to £10,000
With your help...Keep pledging
and we can do this next year...
TheChristmas Dinner is a pop up organisation founded by the poet Lemn Sissay MBE, we are a group of 12 professionals who between us have over a hundred years experience of working with young people. Our aim is to provide a Christmas Day Dinner for care leavers aged between 18 and 25 on Christmas Day. Many care leavers are sat in flats, B&B’s, hostels, away from family or are sofa surfing and indeed living on the streets on their own at Christmas. Christmas is a reminder of everything they never had. It's often a dreaded day. Not now. We will put on a scrumptious Christmas meal and create a magical day to remember at a secret location in Manchester. This year in Manchester we will provide dinner for 40 18-25 year olds. Can you help us?
TheChristmas Dinner is a life changing life saving experience. It is a time of warmth and happiness. A time to have a good laugh. Thank you. The Christmas Dinner team believes the whole country should create an event like this for care leavers. Though the idea was hatched last year The Christmas Dinner team came together only a few months ago with the sole aim of making this happen. We are motivated by the need to bring about change in how we as a community can assist young care leavers. Christmas is a time for family and in the absence of family these care leavers should be able to rely on us. With your help this Christmas they can.
We have received kind pledges of gifts and money from individuals and companies. We have raised awareness of the care leaver and the challenges we face as adults in our society, you the public have responded, we are incredibly touched and grateful for your support and generosity. We set out to raise enough funds for dinner this year, and what is so overwhelmingly wonderful is that we now have the opportunity to think about what we can do in 2014. Yes do this again next year but hopefully run some food based projects with young care leavers in the mean time. Another legacy will be to produce a DIY guide to support others around the country who would like to host a Christmas dinner in their area.
THANK YOU
For all enquiries contact: [email protected]
#TCD2013
Who TheChristmas dinner steering group are:
Lemn Sissay – Broadcaster and Author
Ian Dickson - Care leaver, advocate & retired social worker
Louise Wallwein Poet Playwright Care leaver
Delseriene Wall – Experienced Social Worker
Sarah Sturmey. Founder of Pure In-Sight
Mary Campbell-Wharam, Research & Development Pure In-Sight
Rod Kippen Children’s rights officer. Artist.
Maxine Wrigley – A National Voice
Simon Rudin – Theatre in Prisons and Probation
Thank you to Pure In-Sight for assisting us with this project. Pure In-Sight is a charity working with and for care leavers to design and develop high impact projects 356 days a year. All their energy is focused on reducing isolation and loneliness. Providing opportunities to increase confidence, emotional resilience and talent.http://pure-insight.org.uk