Over the past few months, our elves in the workshops have been raising money by helping with small-scale personal projects and selling timber off-cuts to buy gifts for local children. Yesterday, the Stage One sleigh donated a vanload of toys to Spirit of Christmas in Selby.

Run by volunteers, Spirit of Christmas is a family-orientated charity. The team hosts Christmas parties across Yorkshire for low-income families who may be struggling at this time of year. In addition, they’ve created a Santa’s grotto in the heart of the high street. Invited families can select age-appropriate toys and books that are generously donated by others. To date, they’ve catered for around 5,000 children and their families at Christmas. However, their charity doesn’t end during the festive season. The Banana Box Toy Project provides much-needed resources, gifts, stationery and even toiletries to support families throughout the year.

“Since having kids, I’ve looked at Christmas differently. First, you start thinking about families who aren’t as fortunate as yours. And it’s the kids that get to you. Every kid should have a toy at Christmas. You want them all to experience what your kids are experiencing. It made me want to do something. We thought about supporting a toy drive but wanted to know where our donations were going. I wanted to support a charity that reached our communities. I did some research and found Spirit of Christmas. The fact the Banana Box Toy project is year-round appealed, plus the outreach is huge. It touches so many areas across Yorkshire, areas we live. We went to the store and selected toys our kids would want. And that made it personal, knowing the joy it would bring. A huge thank you to everyone who has donated.” – Adam Fishwick, Department Supervisor – Wood

Well done to the wood and metal shop, along with the scenic team for such a great initiative that will touch many lives at this difficult time. We hope that it will bring joy to many children at Christmas.