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Gabrielle Devine

Royal parks half marathon 2025 spread a smile

Team Smile takes the Royal Parks Half Marathon

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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On Sunday 12 October, 50 incredible runners proudly represented Spread a Smile at the Royal Parks Half Marathon – one of the UK’s most-loved running events.

Our amazing #TeamSmile runners took on the 13.1-mile route through four of London’s Royal Parks: Hyde Park, Green Park, St James’s Park, and Kensington Gardens, with every step raising funds to support our work spreading smiles to seriously ill children and their families.

Spread a Smile Co-Founder Vanessa Crocker, Chief Executive Officer Lucy Jackson, and members of the team were there on the day to cheer, support, and celebrate each runner’s achievement.

Tasha Mann, Spread a Smile Community Fundraising Manager, said

“To each and every person who ran for Team Smile – thank you. It was incredible to see such a brilliant group come together to raise vital funds for our work. We know how much goes into preparing for an event like this, the training, the fundraising, and the determination it takes on the day itself – and we hope you’re proud of everything you’ve achieved. You’ve helped us bring so much joy to seriously ill children and their families.”

We’d like to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who trained, fundraised, and ran as part of Team Smile. Your support means a great deal and helps us reach even more children facing difficult times, and we hope you join us again for another challenge event in the future.

Feeling inspired?
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Play in Healthcare week spread a smile 2025

Play in Healthcare Week

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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Play in Healthcare Week 2025

Play in Healthcare Week (PIHW – formerly known as Play in Hospital Week) is a special week which raises awareness of the benefits and importance of play in healthcare settings.

At Spread a Smile, we believe that play is integral to a child’s health, wellbeing and development. For children facing illness and time in hospital, away from friends, family and everything they know, play can be difficult to access. This is where Spread a Smile comes in; offering opportunities for play and moments of joy, connection, and normalcy in an otherwise clinical and often frightening environment.

Recent research reinforces what Spread a Smile has long known: play is an essential part of a child’s health and wellbeing, and its presence in healthcare settings can transform the experience of young patients. Despite this recognition, play often remains undervalued and under resourced in healthcare settings.

This Play in Healthcare Week, Spread a Smile will support our NHS hospital partners to help bring the joy of play into the hospital setting, including a schedule of regular in-person partner visits, a special one-off visit to Hillingdon Hospital, a cupcake decorating workshop at UCLH and more.

Spread a Smile’s talented entertainers will create meaningful opportunities for play that brighten hospital wards, providing opportunities for pain distraction and engagement and space for children just to be children again.

A scoping review by the University of Cambridge’s PEDAL Centre and Starlight Children’s Foundation highlights that play “can profoundly influence children’s experience of receiving healthcare and their perception of being well amidst health adversity”. Play helps reduce stress and anxiety, fosters emotional resilience, and even supports physical recovery. It allows children to process their emotions, gain a sense of control, and find comfort during challenging times.

As the UK government develops its 10-year health plan with a focus on creating “the healthiest generation of children ever”, Spread a Smile champions the vital role of play and joy in children’s healthcare. Every day, we witness its’ transformative impact and of laughter, creativity and connection on a child’s wellbeing. Our vision is for every seriously ill child in hospital to have access to play and moments of joy and no child feels alone in their journey. Please consider making a donation to help us do just that.

Spread a Smile has lots planned for Play in Healthcare Week…

A joyful start at Hillingdon Hospital
We will launch the week with a very special visit to Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge, Spread a Smile entertainers Louise and Colette will spend the day visiting young patients with incredible balloon models, music and plenty of smiles.

An extra-special visit to John Radcliffe Hospital
As part of our expanded efforts for PIHW, we will be proud to arrange an additional visit to John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Our entertainers will visit young patients across all inpatient and outpatient wards with personalised bedside visits including musical performances and magic shows to suit each young patient’s individual needs.

Cupcake creativity at UCH, thanks to Lola’s
Over at University College Hospital (UCH) in London, PIHW celebrations will continue with a delicious twist. Thanks to our friends at Lola’s Cupcakes, we will host hands-on cupcake decorating sessions, with young patients being able to design and decorate their own treats. These workshops provide a chance for children to express themselves, take a break from the clinical environment, and have some fun during their hospital stay.

Spread a Smile’s Director of Services, Laura Walter, said

“Play in Hospital Week is a fantastic opportunity to reflect on the work we do and the values we hold at Spread a Smile – bringing fun, creativity and laughter into hospitals to help ease the clinical environment. Through our additional visits this week, we’ve been able to reach even more children and families, offering moments of joy when they’re needed most.

We’re so grateful to the hospitals and play teams we partner with for their tireless dedication to young patients, and to our supporters, entertainers and partners like Lola’s Cupcakes for helping make this week so special. PIHW 2025 is a powerful reminder of the vital role play continues to have in a child’s care, especially during life’s most challenging times.”

Play in Hospital Week is a powerful celebration of the vital role play has for the wellbeing of children facing long periods in hospital, and we’re grateful to Starlight Children’s Foundation and the Society of Health Play Specialists  (SoHPS) for their essential work in championing it.

Want to stay up to date with all things Spread a Smile? Sign up to our monthly e-newsletter here and receive our latest news directly to your inbox.

 

Spread a smile Comedy Night 2025

Comedy Night Line-up Announced

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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We’re excited to reveal the incredible line-up for this year’s Spread a Smile Comedy Night, returning to The Comedy Store, London on Monday 17 November 2025.

Taking to the stage will be an outstanding roster of talent, including Tom Allen, Rhys James, and Harriet Kemsley, with more brilliant names to be announced soon. The night will once again be hosted and curated by our wonderful Ambassador, Suzi Ruffell, promising an unforgettable evening of laughter – all in support of Spread a Smile.

Now in its sixth year, the Comedy Night is a much-loved highlight in our events calendar and is proudly sponsored by Texel Foundation and Enra.

Tickets are on sale now and all proceeds will help us spread even more smiles to seriously ill children and young people in hospital.

In November 2024 Suzi was joined by the amazing Tom Allen, Nish Kumar, Chantel Nash, Jack Skipper and Ania Magliano for a fantastic evening of laughs, smiles and also magic, thanks to a special appearance from former BGT winner, the military mind reader Richard Jones. So far over £100,000 has been raised through this brilliant event, helping to fund our work spreading smiles in 39 NHS hospitals and 6 hospices across the country.

Buy your tickets here

Event: Spread a Smile Comedy Night
Date: Monday 17 November 2025
Venue: The Comedy Store, 1a Oxendon St, London SW1Y 4EE
Ticket price: £30

Sign up to our monthly e-newsletter to stay up to date with all things Spread a Smile.

 

world smile day spread a smile

Spreading Smiles for World Smile Day

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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As part of our World Smile Day fundraising and awareness initiative, last week was full of so much joy and laughter as we reached our target of spreading over 800 smiles in just one week to seriously ill children, their families, and the healthcare professionals who care for them.

Our entertainers carried out an amazing 21 visits to 14 NHS hospitals, including visits to St George’s Hospital, Tooting, The Christie in Manchester and the Paediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) at King’s College Hospital.

We organised a bespoke visit for teenage patients at University College Hospital London (UCLH), a pamper day for parents and carers at Evelina Children’s Hospital, a brilliant cupcake decorating session for young patients at St Mary’s Hospital thanks to the amazing Lola’s Cupcakes and were delighted to welcome Pan-n-Ice on our visit to UCLH to deliver some of their delicious ice-cream rolls. Our thanks go to both Lola’s Cupcakes and Pan-n-Ice for their support and also to our wonderful friends from the LEGO Group who joined us at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) to provide opportunities for creative play and fun using the iconic LEGO® bricks.

We ended the week with our largest ever visit to GOSH, visiting all inpatients and outpatient wards, and spreading so much fun, magic and laughter to everyone we met.

World Smile Day is a chance for the world to take time to smile and feel the benefits that a smile can bring. Our supporters and friends shared their smiles with us on social media, helping to spread even more smiles around the world and we are so grateful to everyone who helped spread the word and supported our activities across our socials networks.

A huge thank you to everyone who supported World Smile Day 2025 – our incredible partners and all those who donated to ensure we can continue to spread even more smiles in the months to come.

We’re incredibly proud to have celebrated our biggest World Smile Day to date and are looking forward to next year and how we can make this initiative even bigger and better. If you or your company would like to partner with us to help make this happen, we’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch with Lucy Chesney, our Head of Partnerships at lucychesney@spreadasmile.org to find out more.

Although World Smile Day has passed, we’ll keep spreading smiles throughout the year and it’s not too late to set up a regular gift to help us deliver our upcoming seasonal activities including our Christmas Smile Hampers, hospital treat drops and our Winter Party.

Thank you so much to everyone who helped us spread a smile for World Smile Day 2025!

Spread a smile entertainer variety show

Entertainer Variety Show on 23 October

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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Spread a Smile is delighted to announce its second annual Entertainer Variety Show – a very special fundraising event where will showcase the talents of the charity’s amazing entertainers, providing guests with the opportunity to experience first-hand the magic and joy they bring to young patients and their families.

Get your tickets here.

Entertainer Variety Show
Date: Thursday 23 October 2025, 7.30pm
Venue: The Camden Club, 72-73 Chalk Farm Rd, Chalk Farm, London NW1 8AN
Ticket price: £25
Drinks and food available to buy at the venue.

Spread a Smile entertainer and Visit Manager, Sar (also known as Sar with the guitar), has been working closely with the charity’s fundraising team to curate the event saying, “After the incredible success of our first Entertainer Variety Show last year, we’re back – and this time at the cool Camden Club, NW1. Our amazing entertainers are absolutely buzzing to perform again, and I couldn’t be prouder of my friends who are generously giving up their time this evening to help raise funds for the incredible charity, Spread a Smile.

For the past 12 years I’ve had the privilege of being a Spread a Smile entertainer, meeting so many inspiring children and families, as well as collaborating with a truly special group of performers. These experiences have inspired me to create this event where families and friends can experience the magic of Spread a Smile live on stage. The evening will feature a mix of music, magic, and more – with the goal of raising funds and awareness. I hope as many people as possible will join us for what promises to be a very special night.”

All proceeds from the show will go towards raising vital funds for Spread a Smile’s work spreading smiles to the families we support.

Sign up to our newsletter here to be the first to hear about our other upcoming events.

 

Enewsletter spread a smile

September 2025 e-newsletter

 600 290 Gabrielle Devine
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Our September e-newsletter is here!  

We’ve had another incredible month, packed with family events, amazing fundraising efforts, and so many smiles.  

We had the pleasure of welcoming some of the families we support to wonderful theatre trips, including 101 Dalmatians and The Lion King, complete with a pre-theatre party including magic, face painting, music and delicious treats.  

We also hosted a special evening to celebrate the incredible NHS healthcare professionals we work with. We were delighted to give these professionals a chance to be on the receiving end of some magic, a way for us to show our heartfelt appreciation for all they do.  

We were pleased to speak at the inaugural BizzFest as their official charity partner, and we also had partners hosting amazing events such as the Insurance Dinner and the Compass Carter TB100.  

We also announced some exciting events: Entertainer Variety Show on 23 October, and our Comedy Night hosted by Suzi Ruffell on 17 November.  

Last but no means least, we shared the news that after many years of dedicated service as Trustee and Co-Founder, our much-loved Josephine Segal, has decided that the time is right to step back from her role on the Board and her day-to-day involvement with Spread a Smile.

Find out more in our September e-news here.  

Sign up to our e-news here to get our e-newsletter delivered straight to your inbox every month.  

Making connections at BizzFest 2025

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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We recently had the pleasure of being selected as a charity partner for the inaugural BizzFest – a dynamic new networking event designed to inspire, connect, and propel business growth. It was an incredible day, bringing together young founders and teams for a daytime conference followed by an evening festival.

Our Partnerships Manager, Rosie Perkins, spoke to attendees and guests about Spread a Smile and the charity’s work and inspiring opportunities to develop bespoke and mutually beneficial partnerships. Rosie was also joined by one of our brilliant magicians, who offered a glimpse of the joy and fun the charity brings to the young patients in hospital.

Partnering with Spread a Smile is a fantastic way for businesses to achieve their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) objectives. These partnerships not only give back to the community but also help to inspire teams and boost morale. At Spread a Smile, we offer various packages for companies to get involved, from fundraising and event opportunities to bespoke volunteering days, such as helping to pack 2,000 Smile Hampers to be sent to seriously ill children and their siblings in time for Christmas.

At Spread a Smile, we rely completely on the support of generous companies, trusts and individuals to continue our work spreading smiles across the country when they are needed most. We are extremely grateful to everyone at BizzFest for giving us the opportunity to share our work and raise much needed awareness amongst such an ambitious and inspiring group of people.

If you are interested in exploring ways your company can work with Spread a Smile, please reach out to Lucy Chesney, our Head of Partnerships, at lucychesney@spreadasmile.org.

The Lion King Spread a Smile Theatre Trip 2025

A Day of Pride at The Lion King

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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The team at Spread a Smile recently had the pleasure of welcoming 15 young patients and their families to watch The Lion King at London’s Lyceum Theatre as part of our family events programme. It was an incredible day out for the families who joined us, offering them a chance to enjoy a fun day out away from the day-to-day worries an stress that often accompany serious illness.

Our guests were treated to a special pre-show party in the Ambassadors Lounge with pizza, Lola’s cupcakes, snacks and of course entertainment from Spread a Smile’s talented entertainers including magic, fairies, guitarist, face painting and arts and crafts – plus a Lion King themed quiz! As always, the room was filled with so much happiness and it really set the scene before our families headed in to the theatre to watch the show.

The families then headed into the theatre to enjoy the show. They got ice creams in the interval and then a special treat after the show with a brilliant meet and greet with Simba, Nala and Scar from the cast! Seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces was a perfect end to the day.

The magic of our family events is best captured by the families who attend them, and Caroline, a mother who joined us for the day with her children, shared this message:  “I just wanted to say a huge ‘Thank you’ to everybody at Spread a Smile for the day out at The Lion King. We were all definitely smiling at the end of the day and the whole family had a great time.  We really appreciated the team and being made to feel so special. Thank you! “

Every year, Spread a Smile organises a calendar of family focused events which aim to support young patients, their parents, carers and siblings and bring moments of respite, joyful experiences and enduring memories at the most challenging of times. We are so grateful to everyone at the Lyceum Theatre and the cast of The Lion King for their wonderful support and helping to make the day so special. Also, to Lola’s Cupcakes for providing such delicious treats.

We couldn’t continue to provide these events without the support and generosity of our donors, fundraisers and corporate partners. To find out more about how you can get involved and support our vital work, please take a look here . Thank you.

 

 

 

Spread a smile Comedy Night 2025

Comedy Night with Suzi Ruffel

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
By:

We’re delighted to announce that the annual Spread a Smile Comedy Night, hosted and curated by the charity’s Ambassador Suzi Ruffell, will return to The Comedy Store, London on Monday 17 November 2025.

Hosted and curated by Spread a Smile Ambassador, Suzi Ruffell, guests can look forward to a brilliant night of stand-up comedy, with Tom, Allen, Rhys James and Harriet Kemsley and more names to be announced soon.

A highlight in the events calendar, Spread a Smile’s sixth annual Comedy Night is sponsored by Texel Foundation and Enra.

Tickets are on sale now and all proceeds will help us spread even more smiles to seriously ill children and young people in hospital.

In November 2024 Suzi was joined by the amazing Tom Allen, Nish Kumar, Chantel Nash, Jack Skipper and Ania Magliano for a fantastic evening of laughs, smiles and also magic, thanks to a special appearance from former BGT winner, the military mind reader Richard Jones. So far over £100,000 has been raised through this brilliant event, helping to fund our work spreading smiles in 39 NHS hospitals and 6 hospices across the country.

Buy your tickets here

Event: Spread a Smile Comedy Night
Date: Monday 17 November 2025
Venue: The Comedy Store, 1a Oxendon St, London SW1Y 4EE
Ticket price: £30

Sign up to our monthly e-newsletter to be the first to hear news on the line up as it’s announced.

 

 

CWCF dragon boat race spread a smile 2025

Canary Wharf Contractors Fund Dragon Boat Race

 780 400 Gabrielle Devine
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In August 2025, we joined Canary Wharf Contractors Fund (CWCF) for their brilliant annual Dragon Boat Race, joining the fun in a boat filled with team members from their 10 chosen charities.

It was an incredible day filled with so much laughter and healthy competition, with 30 boats racing down the River Thames in London and helping to raise vital funds to support the event charity partners, including Spread a Smile.

Lucy Jackson, Spread a Smile Chief Executive took part in the race, saying, “It was a real privilege to row alongside other organisations from the charity sector and to see first-hand the impact that Canary Wharf Contractors Fund (CWCF) is having for such a range of brilliant causes.

“CWCF has generously supported Spread a Smile since 2018, helping to spread hundreds of smiles to seriously ill children and young people and enabling us to reach new audiences and meet many new friends for the charity. Their backing – along with the introductions they’ve made for us – has been invaluable.

“We’re proud to work with such a dedicated and supportive company and team and look forward to achieving so much more together.”

A huge thank you to everyone involved with this special day for their hard work and support.

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