Children/Youth

Winston's Wish was founded in 1992 to provide support to children and young people up to the age of 18 following the death of their mother, father, brother or sister. Recognised as a leading authority on the provision of child bereavement services across the UK, we are also the largest provider of bereavement services for children in Europe.

Our services include:

	A national helpline (08452 03 04 05) for anyone caring for a bereaved child (offering support, guidance & information by experienced clinicians)
	An interactive website with many pages specifically for young people
	Group work with bereaved children and their families (including residential group work, specialist groups for those bereaved by suicide and murder and a weekly group for the under fives)
	Individual work with bereaved children and their families
	A range of publications and resources
	Tailor-made training and consultancy for professionals

For further information please contact us on 01242 515157

Registered Charity No. 1061359.

Our services cost just under £1million to run each year and we rely on donations from both the business sector and the general public. We are very proud that our administration costs are low and all the money we raise is spent in Northern Ireland on children with cancer and their families.

For more information, please contact lindsay@nicfc.com  or phone 028 90805599

MedEquip4Kids (formerly Children's Hospitals Appeal Trust) is the charity that helps sick and injured children in and out of hospital.

The Charity works in partnership with hospitals to improve the care available to children when they suffer illness of have been involved in accidents, by providing paediatric specific medical equipment and funding for projects that enhance the hospital environment for the benefit for children and their  families. In many cases this reduces the time spent by children in hospital.

In line with the latest strategic thinking on children's healthcare, MedEquip4Kids also supports community health projects that enable children whenever possible to be treated at home.

For further information call 0161 798 1600 or email info@medequip4kids.org.uk.

Registered Charity No. 1102830

The Children’s Trust provides care, education, therapy and rehabilitation for children with multiple disabilities and complex health needs from across the UK. 

Our current project is to make vital improvements to our residential school, St Margaret’s, which provides a unique education for children with profound and multiple learning difficulties.

Two new classrooms and multi sensory rooms have already been built and the school hall has been enlarged to allow all the children and their carers to attend assemblies together and take part in group activities such as wheelchair dancing.

This year’s overseas challenges will help to fund the next phase of this exciting development project; the building of two purpose designed houses for the residential pupils’ accommodation. 

These houses will provide the children with a better quality of life in a home from home environment whilst ensuring they have the facilities they need to maximise their development.

Registered Charity No. 288018

Founded in 1978 in Northern Ireland, Extern works with children, adults and communities directly affected by social exclusion, through programmes, delivered locally to clients. We work with over 2,000 young people every year and run over 30 programmes as well as our work with the homeless and ex-offenders. Most of our service users are referred by the statutory agencies such as the NI Health & Social Services Trusts, the NI Housing Executive, the Probation Board for (NI) and Health Boards (ROI).

Extern fundraises to pilot innovative projects within areas of social exclusion that we are best able to provide because of our expertise. Many of these are then mainstream funded. We fundraise to provide equipment, educational outings, outward bound, outdoor and indoor skills training which are not covered by core funding and we are looking at creating a development fund to support young people after they have finished our programmes. We receive support from local businesses and donors, as well as through events such as the treks.

Registered Charity No. X3714NI  

HOPE’s aims and objectives are to assist children, who suffer through being handicapped, orphaned, poor and exploited, in particular those living in developing countries. This is achieved through providing, promoting and advancing children’s rights to basic necessities, including education and health care, aimed at sustaining their long term development.

Registered Charity No. 1041258

Weston Spirit is a forward thinking national youth charity, tackling issues of social exclusion in young people, through its innovative and highly effective Personal Development programmes and projects.

We aim to be the best UK provider of personal development opportunities for young people.

Registered Charity No. 327937

The UK support group for people with Spinal Muscular Atrophy and for their families. The Trust raises funds to support research into SMA, to provide special equipment and to sustain a network of support families and groups to be available to people affected by SMA.

Registered Charity No. 327669

We care for children 0 – 18 years with life threatening or life-limiting conditions and their families from Merseyside, Cheshire, North Wales and Isle of Man. Claire House is dedicated to enhancing quality of life, providing respite, palliative, terminal and bereavement care.

Registered Charity No. 1004058

Aberlour provides accommodation and services to children and young persons who are in need of care, protection, assistance or training, or whose circumstances merit assistance from the Trust.

Registered Charity No. SCO 07991

"Even more basic than the freedom of speech…....is the freedom to speak"

This quote from ACE Centre Patron (and communication aid user) Professor Stephen Hawking sums up what we are trying to achieve with our work with disabled children and technology.

Based in Oxford, the ACE Centre is a small charity for disabled children, with a world renowned reputation for expertise in the field of communication aids and assistive technology for children with disabilities.

Registered Charity No. 1040868

The Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity provides funding for research into the prevention and cure of illness, for the purchase of equipment and to improve the hospital environment for the benefit of patients, staff and visitors at Booth Hall and Pendlebury Children's Hospitals.

We remain committed to providing the very best healthcare for sick or injured babies and children across the region.

Registered Charity No. 1056629

Working to Improve Healthcare for Children Worldwide

Child Advocacy International works to alleviate the suffering of mothers and children in countries where there is extreme poverty, armed conflict or other disaster.  With the help of local professionals we deliver hands on maternal and child friendly healthcare, specifically in hospitals but also integrating closely with primary healthcare. We provide training in emergency care for medical and nursing staff using the educational materials we develop.  Through advocacy we promote the best interests of children and their mothers.

Registered Charity No. 1071486

KIND was founded in 1975 by Stephen Yip and for the last 29 years it has worked with some of the most disadvantaged children in the country. The charity has very simple aims, to provide children with an opportunity to experience another side of life and to show them that they and life do have more to offer. In a structured and caring environment we make a real difference in the lives of many unlucky children.

Registered Charity No.518985

Since the opening of the Hospice in 1987, more than eleven hundred children and young people have received care and support at Martin House and currently, we are helping over 300 families.

Martin House has two purpose built facilities, one with nine beds for children and their families and one with 6 beds for teenagers and young adults. Both provide home from home accommodation with age appropriate décor and amenities. The principal objective of the hospice is to provide care and support, free of charge, to children and young people with a life limiting illness and to their families, in a way which most suits their needs. Families can use any mix of a range of services which include respite care, symptom control, nursing and practical care and terminal care. These services are also offered to the families in their own home. Bereavement support is offered to parents, grandparents and siblings.

Registered Charity No. 517919

The Joshua Foundation (TJF) was created in September 1998 to provide holidays and experiences for children and their families where the child is diagnosed with terminal cancer. TJF was launched  on September 27th 1998 with a 5K fun/walk that raised £16K and on January 17th 1999, a huge party at Planet Hollywood, London, saw the first gathering of children and the beginning of "TJF Experiences". Whereas other wish organisations provide one-off experiences, the Joshua Foundation effectively 'adopts' children and their families providing them with on-going experiences and memories.

Registered Charity No. 1072365

Children North East was founded in 1891 as the Poor Children's Holiday Association.  In those days we provided seaside trips to poor children from the slums of Newcastle and Gateshead.  We went on to develop holidays in the country for frail children, night shelters and clubs for street children, a sanitorium in the country for sick children and children's homes for children for whom living at home was no longer an option.

 Of course times change and we no longer operate projects like that, preferring instead to encourage the care of children to take place within the family and to ensure that the families have the necessary support systems in place to make this possible.

Children North East is the region's longest established children's charity.  We operate community based projects all over the region, all with the aim of letting children, young people and their families reach their full potential and to ease the pressures that life's inequalities can bring.

Registered Charity No. 222041

For 130 years BGWS (Boys & Girls Welfare Society) has provided services for children, young people and young adults in the North of England and Wales. Today, BGWS works on behalf of children in public care and children, young people and young adults who have:

- Autistic spectrum disorders

- Learning disabilities

- Emotional, behavioral and social difficulties

- Physical disabilities

BGWS is a registered charity and served over 1700 children and young people during 2003/04.

Registered Charity No. 209782