Chepstow and Caldicot Lions have recently been made aware of the plight of young people leaving care institutions. These young people have lived within a care institution for the majority of their lives. When they reach 18 they must leave the care home and start to live independently. This is a terrifying experience for many youngsters who have no experience of living in the wider world. They have no family to support them and no frame of reference for how to embark on setting up and running their own home. It can be a desperately lonely and scary experience.

They are provided with accommodation and basic furnishings but must, for the first time, contemplate paying bills, cooking, cleaning and doing their own laundry. They often do not know the basics of cooking, making gravy, pastry or preparing vegetables. Chepstow and Caldicot Lions have liaised with Monmouthshire County Council Social Services and sought advice on what we can do to help these young people transition into independent living in our communities.

Lions 'Box for Living' is an initiative to provide each young person leaving care with a box of essential items to assist them in running their home. We hope to provide items such as, a screw driver, a vegetable peeler, a basic cookery book and some cleaning materials. Each box will cost approximately £100 and we would like to supply 20 boxes.

Please help us by making a donation. Your support would be most appreciated. We'll be running this appeal right the way through until February 2022 and perhaps beyond, so there's plenty time.