Campaign by Story
For the past 11 years we have delivered special Christmas gifts and goodies to children and young people who are inpatients in child and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) wards across the UK over the festive period.
These young people will be experiencing one of the most challenging times in their lives, and they absolutely deserve to feel special, remembered and included during the holiday season. This year, with your help, we're hoping to give a gift to every single young person who is in inpatient mental health care at Christmas - as well as a special gift, activities, homemade cards, sensory toys and decorations for every ward too.
Last year we were able to send over 1300 individual gifts to young people experiencing Christmas as an inpatient on a mental health ward, as well as a ward gift, decorations, activities and an advent calendar to 115 CAMHS wards across the UK. This year we also want to send a bit of Christmas joy to CAMHS Tier 4 day units too!
As a recipient of these boxes a few times, thank you so incredibly much. I remember how excited we would all get, we’d all open them in the lounge, excitedly show each other what we got - it truly was such a light when things were so dark for all of us. It gave us a reason to smile...to play new games when we’d been playing the same thing for months. Thank you, you are angels on earth, these boxes seriously make such a difference
Why we exist
Christmas For CAMHS was originally set up because volunteers saw a huge disparity in the way CAMHS units were treated over the festive period compared to other NHS services for children and young people. It just wasn't fair so we wanted to do something to change that.
Children are admitted to CAMHS units to receive support and treatment for mental ill health, such as psychosis or depression, or eating disorders like anorexia, as well as trauma and distress. There are still no official figures for how many children will spend the festive season in CAMHS units across the UK. While many members of the public and corporate donors give Christmas gifts to children's hospitals or children's wards in general hospitals, CAMHS units, which are usually based away from other services and don't facilitate the same photo opportunities, are often forgotten, or not known about.
For our ward and the young people, the gifts, decorations and activities bring a sense of joy, care and normality during a time that can feel particularly difficult. The generosity helps our young people feel seen and valued, and it truly lifts the atmosphere on the ward during Christmas
How can you help?
The best way to help us, if you can, is to make a donation so our volunteer elves can get busy with buying and assembling gifts to whizz them across to CAMHS units across the country. Every single donation is important to us and we hugely appreciate your support in making the christmassy magic happen!
If you'd prefer, you can choose your own gift for us for our elves to deliver to a CAMHS unit via our Amazon Wish List.
Want to do more? Why not become one of our extra special fundraising elves! You could have a gift wrapping race or Christmas cake bake-off - or something as simple as a collection at the end of a concert or school play or getting sponsored for doing a run in a Santa hat (at any time of year!). Please get in touch and tell us about your fundraising plans!
Another fantastic way to help is by spreading the word about what we are doing. Retweet us on Threads, X or Bluesky, share about our charity on facebook or chat about our charity in your instagram stories (you can find our instagram here). Or just tell your colleagues about us over a cup of tea! The possibilities are endless...
Staff are so grateful for Christmas for CAMHS allowing us to give something special to each individual. We were able to give them some festive cheer and made to feel cared for even more during a difficult time in their lives. This package really helps take some stress off the staff when it comes to preparing the unit for Christmas and we look forward to it every year. Thank you!!
Want to find out more?
Click here to visit our website - or give us a follow on social media. You can also drop us an email if you fancy (info@christmasforcamhs.org.uk) or join our mailing list.
Christmas For CAMHS is a registered charity: 1190353