Member Article

Teesside based autism charity spreads virtual Christmas cheer

Daisy Chain, the Teesside-based charity for people with autism, hosted a virtual Christmas performance for service users and their families. The charity would normally hold a number of festive events, helping to raise funds and engage the community, but due to the ongoing pandemic, all of these – including Daisy Chain’s annual carol service – have had to be cancelled. The virtual performance features young service users, volunteers and staff singing and sharing jokes to help spread festive cheer. The video also showcases some of the facilities and services that Daisy Chain offers, including the new virtual support centre and outdoor areas as well as saying ‘thank you’ to players of the People’s Postcode Lottery. This year the charity has been awarded £400,000 of funding through the People’s Postcode Lottery to help the vital support services it offers to local families and individuals affected by autism. Neeraj Sharma, Daisy Chain’s chief executive, said: “We rely on the generosity of supporters like players of People’s Postcode Lottery and it has been wonderful to see the young children and staff having so much fun creating this short video that we can share with our supporters. “The young people featured attend Daisy Chain’s services, and some don’t attend full-time school, so may have otherwise missed out on taking part in Christmas activities. We enjoyed putting together the Christmas performance for them as well as planning a socially distanced Christmas lunch, supported by the care team. “I’d like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a merry Christmas and to thank them for their incredible support during what has been a difficult year for so many.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by News Gathering .