Fancy grabbing yourself a bargain AND helping sick and disabled children in Yorkshire?
At Yorkshire Children’s Trust Charity Shop, in Halifax, you can do exactly that, making a real difference to local children and families.
Set up by Simon Widdop – founder and trustee of YCT – the shop is below the charity’s offices in Commercial Street, offering high quality, low cost clothing, toys and safety equipment for children and babies, with stock constantly changing.
The charity was founded in 2011, because Simon spotted a need for more family-centred help when his daughter Leigh-Anne battled leukemia.
“We found great financial hardship when Leigh-Anne was in hospital for such a prolonged period and when she got out she needed the support of a wheelchair as she has lost a lot of muscle mass in her legs, something we struggled to get and had to source at our own cost,” explains Simon. “Talking with other parents going through similar situations we realised that financial hardship was an ongoing theme and when having to source anything medically-related, it comes at a great cost.
“Together with another set of parents we set up what has become Yorkshire Children’s Trust, despite relying on voluntary donations, it has provided support to hundreds of children in the region that would have to go without the support. Sometimes it is just as simple as having a few days away with the family, so we’ve worked with Haven to provide respite for not just the child, but the whole family.”
YCT supports children in Yorkshire who suffer from any long term life-limiting disability or illness.
Help includes financial support to cover medical equipment or treatment, hospital travel costs and essential home modifications.
Emotional support ranges from short family breaks at Haven Holiday Parks to welfare benefits advice and most recently, one-to-one counselling with a BACP registered counsellor.
YCT does not receive any Lottery, NHS or Government funding, so all donations – including buying things in the shop – helps to make a real difference.
“I think it’s safe to say that we cannot provide our support to sick and disabled children in Yorkshire without the enormous generosity of local people and local businesses,” adds Simon. “We are always looking for corporate sponsors and new businesses that are looking for a charity to support. I ask that anyone who would like more information to please visit our website, www.yctrust.uk, call us on 01422 728080 or drop us an email to [email protected].”
