READING FAMILY AID
Putting Smiles on Children's Faces for 30 years!
Dontion Points are now closed for Toys and Teens Appeal
Although we are no longer accepting toys this year, you can still donate funds to our GoFundMe Appeal. Funds donated will be used for next year's Appeal or for outings that we will arrange during next year.
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Ruth Perkins, Fundraising Manager for the charity said: “There are more and more families finding themselves in difficulties, families that prior to the cost of living going up so dramatically were manging just about and are now finding they can’t manage. In these families the kids go to school, they talk to their friends about what they hope to get for Christmas. These kids without all of the people that support us, they wouldn’t get anything. And that’s really tough to go back to school after the Christmas holidays and say I didn’t get anything for Christmas”. Watch the video and see how Reading residents and and many companies like Roc Search in Reading are helping.
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This lovely video was created by the children from the Dolphin School in Reading UK, with a little help from CH Video.
It is promoting Reading Family Aid's Toys and Teens Appeal which is open for donations until early December,. |
Cllr Tony Page, Mayor of Reading, launched the Reading Family Aid Toys and Teens Appeal back in October.
The Mayor said: “We have many families and children in the borough facing very tough times. Families are living in over crowded, damp conditions. The need for support at Christmas is acute and that’s why the Toys and Teens Appeal is so important." He then went on to donate the first toy to the appeal. Watch the Mayor officially launch this year's Appeal here.
Huge thanks to all of this year's sponsors:
Reading Chronicle who publish a story each week along with all our donation points.
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Big Yellow Self Storage
who provide free storage for the toys. |
Caversham Vehicle Hire who provide the vans we need for collecting all the toys from the donation points and delivering the presents.
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Berkshire Freemasons who are generously donating hundreds of new toys.
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30 years of Smiles
Reading Family Aid celebrated operating as a registered charity for 30 years in June.
In all that time we have provided presents at Christmas to about 30,000 children thanks to the tens and tens of thousands of gifts donated by the residents of Reading.
And we have taken over 10,000 on trips to theme parks, the panto, zoos, the seaside, farm parks, Camp Mohawk and other local attractions thanks to the money donated by the residents of Reading, business, places of worship and charitable bodies.
And before that we had been operating as a community group for at least another 30 years.
Reading Family Aid celebrated operating as a registered charity for 30 years in June.
In all that time we have provided presents at Christmas to about 30,000 children thanks to the tens and tens of thousands of gifts donated by the residents of Reading.
And we have taken over 10,000 on trips to theme parks, the panto, zoos, the seaside, farm parks, Camp Mohawk and other local attractions thanks to the money donated by the residents of Reading, business, places of worship and charitable bodies.
And before that we had been operating as a community group for at least another 30 years.
That's a lot of smiley faces!
Our mission is to put a smile on the faces
of disadvantaged children in the Reading area.
of disadvantaged children in the Reading area.
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We help children living with poverty and other disadvantages in the Reading area. They may be living in a family affected by drug taking, alcoholism, physical or sexual abuse, chronic illness or disability; or they may have a disability or illness themselves.
Our goal is to bring a little joy to their lives.
Out motto is: To Put Smiles on the Faces of Children.
We do this by distributing toys at Christmas to children aged 0-16 through our Toys & Teens Appeal. We also provide Outings throughout the year for children and their families who wouldn't be able to go otherwise.
If you would like to learn more about our activities and the Toys & Teens project please check out our blog pages and sign up for our monthly newsletter.
If you would like to get involved in our work, please see our Volunteer page. We are specifically looking for people to help out with our publicity particularly leading up to the Toys and Teens Project.
Our goal is to bring a little joy to their lives.
Out motto is: To Put Smiles on the Faces of Children.
We do this by distributing toys at Christmas to children aged 0-16 through our Toys & Teens Appeal. We also provide Outings throughout the year for children and their families who wouldn't be able to go otherwise.
If you would like to learn more about our activities and the Toys & Teens project please check out our blog pages and sign up for our monthly newsletter.
If you would like to get involved in our work, please see our Volunteer page. We are specifically looking for people to help out with our publicity particularly leading up to the Toys and Teens Project.
Why the community needs us
Reading seems so prosperous that many people might find it hard to imagine there are desperately deprived families here. But in 2021, 27% of Reading's children were living in poverty - that's 9,000 children (source: The End Child Poverty Coalition).
All the families referred to us are in genuine need. We aim to offer them some relief from the harsh day-to-day realities of their lives - some of the extras that social services and other agencies can't provide.
All the families referred to us are in genuine need. We aim to offer them some relief from the harsh day-to-day realities of their lives - some of the extras that social services and other agencies can't provide.
Our impact on the community
In 2022 3,000 children received a sack of toys at Christmas as a result of our Toys & Teens Appeal. We also took a coachload of local disadvantaged families to Odds Farm for the day, arranged an outing for 100 children on the autistic spectrum and their families to Camp Mohawk, many had a fun day out at Caversham Lakes, about 60 went to Chessington and about 120 went to the pantomime.
Follow us @RdgFamilyAid or www.facebook.com/readingfamilyaid
Reading Family Aid Group Registered Charity No. 1022144 Phone 07930 033413
Reading Family Aid Group Registered Charity No. 1022144 Phone 07930 033413
