Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Homestart Craigavon is a local charity, which helps new mums (and dads) who are struggling. Their difficulties are often around issues like social exclusion, disability, mental health, multiple births, autism, routines, sleeplessness, behavioural difficulties in the children, budgeting, or even just supporting them to develop skills around eg meal prep, or managing a house. 

The volunteers receive comprehensive training. We are all mums ourselves, most of us with older children. We spend a few hours a week with the family. We do a huge variety of things, from emotional support to helping write meal plans and budgets, to accompanying a mum to a mother and toddler group, to sharing ideas with a parent who needs support to engage with their children. We are helpful friends to the family. We do what they need us to, and are lead by the family. 

We build relationships of trust with the family, and help them build and strengthen relationships both with their own children, but also the wider community. Sometimes, all we do is listen. 

Home start Craigavon is a small charity. We get three quarters of our funding from the Trust (SHSCT). This works out as an average cost of only £300 a year to support a child in a family. To keep supporting the volunteers doing this vital work, we need to raise an additional £7k every year. I would be delighted to raise £2,000 towards that goal. 

I'm running in memory of my grandmother. She raised 3 children as a single mother in the 1950s, without any help at all, and I would love to send a time travelling Homestart volunteer back to help her. I can't, but I can certainly raise the funds Homestart needs to help women like her in my local community. 

I'm running on the 28th February next year, that's last Sunday in February, 2021.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. Please help if you can. As the charity is small, every single penny you give makes a difference to families with young children, to help them get through challenging times.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.