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debbiecowling

We don't stop for summer

Hi Sunshine news readers,


We hope you are enjoying the beginning of the school summer holidays and the cooler temperatures after the recent heat wave had us all buying paddling pools and raising the freezers in Asda for the last box of Twisters!


As always, its been a busy week here at Sunshine HQ.


As a fundraiser, I always found it strange when other charities referred to the summer months as “quieter” or “scaled back” periods, for me this is our best opportunity as a small charity to plan family events, build relationships with our wonderful corporate partners and work with children’s advocacy groups to ensure we are shouting about the barrier our families face.


It's definitely NOT a quiet time!


Our families coordinators Rachel and Bev, have literally never stopped over the last few weeks.


Rachel attended the VIP Launch of Newcastle's new Evry Plan - a innovative new plan to ensure that every baby, child and young person in Newcastle can achieve their potential and live life to the fullest.


There were representatives from the council, NHS, charities and businesses; all of whom pledged their commitment to coming together for the benefit of Newcastle's younger generations.


But most importantly; the voice of Newcastle's youth was presented by some remarkable young people who are part of youth voice initiatives and council members.


They explained what was important to young people in the local area and what needs to be improved - and honestly Newcastle, there's a lot of work to be done.


Team Sunshine wants to take this opportunity to say - "we're listening, and we are committed to being part of the change. How can we help?"


Bev has been working hard on the creation of the CANN advocacy service with Irwin Mitchell and setting up our next Family events including sensory play and a trip to the cinema.


In addition to all of this, they’ve both been speaking to local MPs about the lack of provisions in our region and working with our peers on the NENC Newcastle Child Health and Well being network.


AND they’ve both gained a certificate in Youth Mental Health First Aid. I did this course too and it was really insightful,


I'm very proud of us! PHEW!


As regular readers know, we love working with our friends at True Potential, because they share our ethos and vision for a more inclusive North East, with equal opportunities regardless of social background or disability.


So I absolutely loved visiting them for an afternoon with representatives from schools and local charities including Hadrian School in Newcastle, Ceaders Academy and Dryden Schools in Gateshead, Cleaswell Hill Foundation in Northumberland, True Colours Theatre Group and North East Sight Matters, where True Potential presented us with 30 refurbished laptops to support our organisations!


CHARITY GIVEN LAPTOPS: The Chronicle Sunshine Fund were given 30 laptops from True Potential.


This equipment will be used to support children’s learning, help our organisations with data collection and administration and even be used to play charity videos to potential new corporate partners in the future.


We are proud to have supported all of these organisations within the last couple of years, so we were thrilled to facilitate these introductions so that they could benefit from this amazing donation!


These are exactly the types of organisations and charities that a business like True Potential and its charity partner, the Harrison Foundation, love to support because they are all about making a practical and positive difference to people’s lives when they most need support.


True Potential’s Chief Executive and Harrison Foundation trustee, Daniel Harrison, said: “We’re so grateful to the team at the Chronicle Sunshine Fund for connecting us up to these local schools and charities.


"I know how something relatively small like a laptop can make a huge difference in terms of learning and accessibility so I’m delighted we could help.


"Although we’ve grown into a large national business now, our head office and our hearts are very much in the North East where we started, so it’s great to support local charities and people who live in the same communities as us.”


Thanks True Potential, you are North East superstars!


Siobhan x

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