We deliver 'Christmas in a Box' to inpatient CAMHS wards across the UK, ensuring that over 1000 children and young people experiencing mental ill health, distress or trauma feel special, remembered and included in celebrations, despite having to be in hospital over the festive season.
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Young people on CAMHS wards felt completely forgotten at Christmas. When our founder, Dr Ro Bevan, was working as a doctor, she saw first-hand that hospitals supporting children with physical illnesses were showered with huge amounts of gifts and treats in December - as they should be! The following year she was working on a CAMHS ward and she was shocked by the contrast. There wasn’t a single donation and even decorations were sparse. It was like Christmas never arrived. This was just not fair.
Our team of elves will deliver 'Christmas in a box' to every children and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) unit in the UK. This will include small gifts and fidgets for young people to keep, decorations, activities, both a gift and a game for the wards to enjoy together, an advent calendar and, for some, a movie night kit. We also give bigger gifts for those who won't receive anything else. It's not about the gift itself, but the message of care behind it - we know this can be life changing.