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Susie

Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

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September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and a time to highlight the impact cancer has on children, young people and their families.

Each year, Spread a Smile’s team of therapeutic entertainers support hundreds of children, young people and their families, battling all kinds of serious illnesses. Cancer is one of them.

Around 12 children and young people in the UK will find out the devastating news that they have cancer every day, which marks the beginning of a difficult path navigating hospital admissions, invasive treatments, pain and horrible side effects, and ongoing worry and uncertainty.

Spread a Smile’s mission is to be there for as many young people and their families as possible, bringing joy, fun, laughter, distraction, and friendship during some of the most difficult times. Young people like Hannah who in 2022 was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare type of soft tissue sarcoma (cancer).

Andrea, Hannah’s Mum said, “We discovered Spread a Smile whilst waiting for proton beam therapy in the hospital playroom. There was a notice on the wall saying that Spread a Smile would be visiting with a therapy dog, so we asked to change Hannah’s treatment time to coincide with their visit. 

“We met Laura from the charity who explained what Spread a Smile does and how they could support Hannah. Laura was so kind, asking Hannah what she was interested in and listening to her and what she had to say. We realised that Hannah really enjoyed art and so she started weekly art classes in hospital with Abi, one of the Spread a Smile artists. Hannah also loved meeting the magicians and therapy dogs – Buddy, Harry, Thomas and Choco!

“It was such a good thing for both of us – throwing balls for the dogs, having cuddles, learning magic tricks and creating something in art. Hannah would become very poorly whilst on chemotherapy, so we weren’t allowed home at weekends and spent six weeks away from home and family in London. Meeting Spread a Smile would break up the week and give Hannah (and me) so many moments of laughter, happiness and enjoyment.  

“Instead of just turning up at the exact time for our appointments, we would arrive at hospital first thing for when Spread a Smile arrived, so we could spend as much time as possible with them. Hannah didn’t want to miss a thing! It gave her a sense of purpose and meant a huge amount to both of us.

“Spread a Smile also invited us on an outing to afternoon tea at Mildreds restaurant in London – which was brilliant. It was a chance for us to have a day out together, in amongst all the treatment and hospital stuff. We were able to relax and breathe for a while.”

“Since coming home, we are so lucky that Hannah has been able to continue her art classes every other week over Zoom. The classes are a way of her being with other people – friends now – who don’t treat her differently because of her illness. She is Hannah the person, not the illness. She looks forward to the sessions as she is listened to and valued. She has choices and independence which is hugely important when your life feels like it’s controlled by something like cancer.

“Spread a Smile has made a huge difference to Hannah, making life just a bit more manageable.”

Thank you to everyone who makes the work we do spreading smiles to young people like Hannah possible. Click here to find out more about our work across the UK.

Please get in touch if you would like to access our services here.

Reaching more patients virtually

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Spread a Smile’s mission is to bring joy to as many seriously ill children and young people across the country. Thanks to a generous donation of 10 iPads and cases from CJC IT we’ll now be able to reach even more of the most vulnerable patients, carrying out virtual visits in hospitals when face-to-face visits aren’t possible.

Some hospitalised patients are not able to meet our team in person due to infection risk, for example, if they are severely immunocompromised and at a greater risk of serious infection. Spread a Smile Visit Managers will take an iPad with them to our NHS hospital partners and safely pass the iPad to a seriously ill patient so they can meet the Spread a Smile entertainers virtually and enjoy the magic and distraction that they bring.

Spread a Smile Director of Services, Laura Walter said, “When a child is seriously ill, sometimes they might spend weeks or even months isolated from the world around them, not able to do things that other children are doing or see many people other than medical staff. Thanks to the generous gift of iPads from CJC IT, Spread a Smile will be able to reach some of the most vulnerable and seriously ill children and young people, providing moments of comfort and joy during one of the most difficult times of their lives.”

Some of the iPads will also be donated to our hospitals so that Play Teams and staff can access our wider virtual visits and group sessions with their patients when we are not there in person.

Paul Gow, Chief Executive Officer and Founder at CJC said, “Seeing the impact of Spread a Smile first-hand last year really touched me, personally and as a company, CJC is committed and strongly supports the welfare and children’s wellbeing.” He adds, “Many of CJC’s staff are actively volunteering and raising money in support of Spread a Smile, for example, Tough Mudder London next month.”

A huge thank you to CJC IT for their wonderful support and for helping us to spread even more smiles when they are needed most.

Please get in touch with us at fundraising@spreadasmile.org to find out how you or your company can help spread smiles across the UK.

*As always, Spread a Smile will work with the hospital team to adhere to strict infection control procedures, wiping down and sterilising the iPad in between patients.

Building our partnership with the LEGO Group

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Since beginning our partnership with the LEGO Group in 2022, we’ve seen some wonderful initiatives take place for our families, including a special LEGO® build for our 10th anniversary dinner centre pieces and a brilliant LEGO® Masterclass last year as part of their ‘Build the Change’ program.

More recently Spread a Smile’s entertainers and Visit Managers took part in a special Play Agent workshop, exploring the importance of play and how to creatively use LEGO® bricks to facilitate play during our hospital visits.

When a child is ill in hospital, so many day-to-day childhood experiences are lost. Our aim is to bring back some of those experiences, taking them into hospital and helping children to smile and escape from what is going on around them for a little while.

Since the workshop, some of our entertainers have been using LEGO® bricks in hospital to help break the ice before sessions, often finding it a useful and relaxed way of introducing ourselves to new patients, particularly some of the older ones, as the bricks act as a great distraction and point of engagement.

We were also delighted to accompany three of the families we support to the LEGO Group’s office in London for a very special all-exclusive tour, during which we enjoyed a fascinating workshop hosted by the LEGO Group and the opportunity to ask questions and find out more about the iconic LEGO® bricks, including the heaviest set and when the first brick was created.

We’re so grateful to the LEGO Group for their continued support and creativity in helping to spread smiles to the seriously ill children we support.

If you or your company would like to chat about how you can get involved with Spread a Smile and support our vital work, please email us at fundraising@spreadasmile.org

Meet Debbie, Spread a Smile Visit Manager

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Spread a Smile Visit Managers play a vital role facilitating the delivery of our services across our hospital and hospice partners. Acting as the point of contact between our partners and the entertainment team, they ensure the smooth running of our visits.

Meet Debbie Tropp who has been a Spread a Smile Visit Manager for seven years and read on to find out more about her work.

Tell us about your role with Spread a Smile and what it involves…

“I started working for Spread a Smile nine years ago, providing monthly art and craft sessions at the Royal London Hospital in their huge playroom. Straight away I loved it. I love working with the amazing children and families, the fabulous medical staff, Spread a Smile’s talented team of entertainers and the incredible team in the office.  

“Since the pandemic, I am mainly based at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), organising the regular weekly visits into the intensive care areas. This involves teaming up with one of our talented singers and visiting all of the babies, children and teenagers in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and Cardiac Intensive Care Unity (CICU) and also the older babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The singers will sing beautiful songs from nursery rhymes to Disney, show tunes and pop songs. We mostly sing to the patients but also take parent requests too. Anything goes really.

“I also help deliver the Spread a Smile weekly entertainer visits on a Thursday morning to GOSH, where we try and visit as many wards and hospital areas as we can, delivering a whole range of entertainment from music, to magic, to therapy dog and fairy visits.”

What does a day in the life of a Visit Manager look like?

“I meet up with the entertainer(s) before going into the hospital and we walk to the ward, always following infection control procedures. We normally see the nurse in charge or Play Specialist for a quick hand over and then proceed to walk around the ward, being mindful of what is going on for each individual patient.

“We absolutely love it when a staff member specifically tells us that they have someone they want us to see. It’s amazing how beneficial our interactions and singing are for the patient, parent and all medical and non-medical staff. Often, I observe staff singing along, tapping away or doing a fully shimmy as our entertainer sings to the child and family. A few times the medical staff have noticed positive changes in a child’s heart recording. Many times, I have seen children really relax and even fall asleep.

“We receive so many positive comments saying that our visits have helped reduce anxiety and brought out smiles in children who haven’t smiled for a while. I remember Tash, one of our singers once singing to three babies, one after the other, all in a row, sending them all to sleep. The atmosphere completely changed and staff and parents were all talking about the wonderful therapeutic value of soft singing.”

Tell us about your specialist work in the intensive care areas at GOSH

“I feel honoured to be allowed to visit the intensive care areas and help provide some therapeutic input in a very clinical situation. We started regular visits just before the pandemic lockdown and then worked closely with medical staff and Matrons to continue to deliver these sessions. Even during the pandemic, I would have an iPad and use that to deliver the entertainment, with our singers singing virtually. This is something we have continued with some of the most vulnerable children under infection control. It’s important work, providing much needed and wanted distraction, stimulation and entertainment to the patient and everyone in the room with them. Being able to visit these patients in PICU and CICU from outside the room means we can help create some very special moments and memories during a very intense time for the families.”

“We had a baby in PICU recently, who hadn’t slept properly all day and was lying in her Mother’s arm. I approached the Mum, quietly inquiring if they would like us to sing. At first she was a bit hesitant as her child was so exhausted, really struggling to sleep. Mum also said that her baby usually loved to hear singing especially Disney and nursery rhymes as she had an older child. I reassured Mum that we could stop at any time. Our lovely talented fairy Tamara sang very softly, nursery and Disney songs and you could just see the Mother and child relax and connect as Tamara sang. Around us the doctors were listening, the nurses were swaying and the parents in the next bed where smiling as they watched their child sleeping. The whole atmosphere was soothed by the singing. The Mum was so happy that we had visited that we ended up going back again to sing to her older child who came to visit a while later.”

What is the best thing about your role? 

“Seeing the huge difference we make to children and families in the intensive care units is very special. It is also amazing to connect with the lovely caring staff in hospital who work so hard to support their patients.

“When a parent sees and shares the benefit of our visit with us, it’s amazing as we know that what we’re doing is worthwhile and making such a difference. We often support families who have been on the wards for a long time, and we feel part of their journey. When they get to go home, it is a very emotional time and it’s wonderful when they then access our Spread a Smile virtual entertainment, family parties and events. We are on their journey with them for as long as they need us.”

Can you share any poignant experiences with us?

“During lockdown, when infection control procedures allowed, I set up a music group with singing and instruments for a small group of children waiting for a heart and/or lung transplant in a high dependency unit at GOSH. I am a qualified Play Specialist and was allowed to come in once a week to spend time with a wonderful group of children. Only one parent was allowed to visit, so we would Zoom in other family members to join in with the session. It felt so important to be helping to connect families during one of the most difficult times of their lives, when the pandemic and serious illness were keeping them apart.

“Before the Pandemic we visited PICU and CICU once or twice a week. From the end February 2021, all visits stopped, so we made art packs to send in for the children on the wards, along with presents to help cheer them up. I agreed with GOSH and Spread a Smile that I would volunteer at the GOSH, using my volunteer badge and experience as a qualified Hospital Play Specialist. I was given a yellow volunteer top to wear and it felt like such a proud moment.

“I helped out on Bear ward once a week on a Tuesday and it was so strange at first wearing a mask for the whole day. It was hard for the patients and their families as only one parent was allowed to stay with their child on the ward and it had to be the same parent each time, meaning families where separated. I remember some parents didn’t get to see their children on the wards, for four months during the first lockdown.

“Alongside the music group, I also worked with Spread a Smile to deliver entertainment via Zoom on iPads so that the children could enjoy even more of the Spread a Smile ‘magic’. As time went on, we expanded our offering to other wards and I increased the number of days I visited, also being allowed to visit children in PICU. It was a challenging, but special time knowing we were making a difference when it was needed most.

“I love my work and one of the best things is when staff stop us as we walk around the hospital telling us that we do exactly what it says on our t-shirts ‘Spread a Smile’.

A delicious partnership with Pan-n-Ice

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Spread a Smile has been working in partnership with Pan-n-Ice for a number of years now. The ice cream experts regularly support our Winter and Summer family and generously give up their time three or four times a year to join us on visits to deliver delicious ice creams to patients in the hospitals we support.

What’s more, Pan-n-Ice have recently launched a brand new, exclusive ice cream flavour in support of Spread a Smile.

The vanilla ice cream rolls with cookie dough and Oreo topped with sprinkles are available to buy at Westfield Stratford Parlour, with 20% of profits from the flavour will be donated to Spread a Smile

Pan-n-Ice have also kindly agreed to host a special event for some of the children and families we support at their Stratford Parlour, delivering three masterclasses and inviting the special guests to make their own ice cream.

Lucy Jackson, Spread a Smile Chief Executive said, “Continued support from our friends at Pan-n-Ice means a huge amount to Spread a Smile. Not only does it raise vital awareness and funds for our work spreading smiles to seriously ill children and young people, it also enables our families to share moments of joy through the simple act of enjoying an ice cream at a time when simple pleasures are often missed. Thank you Pan-n-Ice.”

Henry Milroy, Founder of Pan-n-Ice added, “We are delighted to be taking our partnership with Spread a Smile to the next level by launching a brand new, exclusive ice cream flavour with them at our Westfield Stratford parlour. Spread a Smile has and always will be a big part of our Pan-n-Ice journey and we can’t wait to continue supporting such an amazing, inspiring charity!”

Please do get in touch if you’d like to find out more about supporting Spread a Smile by emailing fundraising@spreadasmile.org – Thank you.

A special residential trip to Flynne’s Barn

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For the second year running, Spread a Smile accompanied three of the families we support on a wonderful residential trip to Flynne’s Barn, located right in the heart of the Cumbrian mountains.

Flynne’s Barn is a very special place, set up by Katherine, Robin, and their son Harry, after their 17-year-old daughter sadly died of cancer in 2016. Named in her memory, Flynne’s Barn is a place where young people living with cancer can come together to find peace and forge friendships in the beautiful Lake District surroundings. It recognises and celebrates Flynne’s love of nature and fearless positivity in making meaningful connections with other young people with cancer and has become a mission that Katherine and Robin have put at the centre of everything they do.

This year we were joined by Amelia, Ridha and Ahmed along with their seven siblings and parents for four days, where they participated in many activities, such as pony riding, canoeing, forest school and meeting rescue dogs. They also created beautiful pieces of art with our incredible artist Marina, played many games, and enjoyed nightly campfires with music and singing. Our lovely aromatherapist, Priya, also helped everyone to unwind and relax with massage and aromatherapy treatments.

It was amazing to see the children and parents fully embrace all the activities and explore the magical environment surrounding Flynne’s Barn. The families all worked as a team when canoeing, and it was amazing the see the confidence grow in the children as they formed new friendships and learned new skills. It was an incredible escape from the world of medical treatment and uncertainty and the families were able to switch off and enjoy time together as a family, making special memories. One of the families who attended cooked a traditional Pakistani curry for everyone, and we all ate together to mark our last night together. It was such a special treat for everyone!

Spread a Smile’s Director of Services, Laura Walter joined the families for the trip saying, “We were so lucky to have the opportunity to spend four days at Flynne’s Barn with some of the wonderful families we support – all of whom have a child undergoing treatment for cancer.

“It was a jam packed few days with a range of activities which enabled our families to forge new friendships and make new connections, whilst enjoying everything the beautiful surroundings had to offer. Everyone embraced everything we did, making the most of the exciting opportunities and experiences.

“Flynne’s Barn is a very special place with a magical quality about it. It was wonderful watching the children grow in confidence and having the opportunity to just be children in a safe and tranquil environment.”

Fatma, Ahmed’s Mum said, “Thank you so much for inviting us to the Lake District. It was just the kind of respite we needed and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The children are beaming and Sarfraz (Ahmed’s Dad) and I are feeling so relaxed and refreshed.

“It was wonderful to have time away as a family to escape from treatments and hospital and it really gave us the time to breathe. The Spread a Smile team are beyond amazing. They are just so understanding, warm and gentle with the children. It was so lovely to see and also to get a chance to have a rest as an adult.”

Katherine Bonner from Flynne’s Barn said, “It’s fantastic to collaborate with Spread a Smile to bring families to the beautiful valley. The surroundings and the tremendous support that the Spread a Smile team provide has a tangible impact. It’s wonderful to see both the children and their parents settle in and embrace all Flynne’s Barn has to offer”.

Thank you to all of our supporters who make trips such as this possible.  Also to Flynne’s Barn for being such wonderful hosts and Priya and our amazing team for making the event so memorable.

Click here to donate and help us continue to be there for our families when they need us most.

Little Learners

Messy play with Little Learners at GOSH

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Last month saw us launch a new support initiative with Little Leaners, the UK’s Leading Educational Messy Play Company, to deliver monthly sensory play sessions for toddlers receiving long-term treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).

Every month, the team from Little Learners help to create a very special learning experience for young children on the wards, exploring tuff trays full of wet and dry ingredients, mark making to help build strong core muscles and encourage first steps towards writing, plus fun activities such as drawing, sorting, building and much more.

For children spending long periods of time in hospital, the sessions are a welcome respite from the day-to-day worry, pain and struggles of managing serious illness. They are a chance to break out from the monotony of long stays in hospital and a wonderful opportunity for very young children to simply have fun.

Laura Walter, Director of Services for Spread a Smile said, “We believe that play holds an important place in every child’s development, even when they are dealing with serious illness. Children need to find space and time to enjoy themselves, relax and have fun. Play provides amazing opportunities to engage with others, explore, be creative and escape from whatever is worrying them or causing pain. Even if that is just for a short time, it can have incredible benefits on the child and everyone around them.

“We are excited and grateful to have the opportunity to work with Little Learners to deliver these wonderful play sessions for children at Great Ormond Street Hospital who are spending long periods on time in hospital and look forward to seeing many more smiles and messy hands in the months to come.”

We’re so grateful to Little Learners UK for their support and the brilliant Play Team at GOSH for enabling us to help create these special moments.

“We feel incredibly honoured to have the opportunity to deliver our sessions to the children at Great Ormond Street, who may have not usually been given the opportunity. It was AMAZING to see the progress and development of the children during the sessions whilst they explored different materials, learned through play and well and truly made their mark!” Little Learners

Please consider making a donation to help us continue our vital work spreading smiles to seriously ill children and young people across our NHS hospital partners. Thank you.

New hospice partner – Helen & Douglas House

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Spread a Smile today announces its newest partner, Helen & Douglas House, a children’s hospice based in Oxford. Local terminally ill children and their families having supportive stays at the hospice and end-of-life care will be able to enjoy Spread a Smile’s services, including visits from entertainers and artists, virtual visits and treat drops.

Spread a Smile’s mission is to bring joy and laughter to as many seriously ill children as possible in NHS hospitals, clinical settings, hospices and homes across the UK. Helen & Douglas House joins 27 major and speciality NHS hospitals and two other hospice partners already supported by Spread a Smile, taking the charity one step closer to its aim of spreading smiles across the whole of the UK.

The Spread a Smile team of talented entertainers, including musicians, artists and therapy dogs, will support events for the children and their families at the hospice. Families will also be able to access virtual online events and activity sessions, including art clubs, balloon modelling, music lessons and more, all with the aim of spreading smiles and a lot of happiness to children with life-shortening conditions and their families.

Chloe Pike, Play Team Member at Helen & Douglas House said of the partnership “We are so delighted to be working with Spread a Smile. They are an amazing charity which brings so many smiles to so many children around the country. Our families have already enjoyed Spread a Smile’s activities at our children’s summer party on 8th August including a singer, magician and face painter. They also sent us kits to make Coronation Cupcakes which the children loved. We are so grateful for their support and help making magical memories for the families who come to Helen & Douglas House.”

Alongside Spread a Smile’s hospice visits and virtual sessions, children and their families at Helen & Douglas House will be able to join special themed activity days celebrating seasonal occasions such as Easter and Christmas, plus family outings and events, giving them the opportunity to join in with fun and exciting experiences that they may otherwise not have access to.

Jackie Freeman, Mum to Jasmine who joined the Helen & Douglas Summer Party said, “The Spread a Smile team have been amazing with Jasmine. They have literally spread a massive smile on Jasmine’s face through their singing, magic and facepainting today at the Helen & Douglas House children’s party.  It is lovely seeing Jasmine enjoy herself and see her smile which she hasn’t done in a long time.”

Lucy Jackson, Spread a Smile’s Chief Executive added, “Spread a Smile is delighted to be working with Helen & Douglas House to bring a little joy to the lives of terminally ill children and their families, helping to create special memories during the most difficult of times.

“Our mission is to reach and support as many seriously ill children and young people as possible across the UK. Welcoming Helen & Douglas House to our partner family means we can do just that, and we are proud to support their amazing team in their work helping local families cope with the challenges of looking after a terminally ill baby or child.” 

Please donate to help us continue our vital work with partners such as Helen & Douglas House and the families we support. Thank you.

Camp Beaumont

Camp Beaumont Big Blue Bash

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We are extremely grateful to once again have the support from our friends at Camp Beaumont this Summer through their Big Blue Bash.

Camp BeaumontCamp Beaumont run multi-activity day camps across the UK and their Big Blue Bash on Friday 4 August is an opportunity to make a splash and invite children and their parents to donate to wear something blue and join in with lots of competitions and games on the day.

“It is an absolute honour to work with Spread a Smile each year and we always look forward to our Spread a Smile summer events when they come around! This year’s Big Blue Bash is set to be a great one! We love working with the team to continue spreading smiles whilst raising money for a cause so close to our hearts. This year, we’re inviting our local parents to join in with the fun at their local Camp Beaumont venue and we’re also running an online raffle offering some amazing prizes!” Camp Beaumont

Camp Beamont’s online raffle is now up and running, with some great prizes to be won, including a year’s supply of Camp Beaumont childcare and an animal adoption voucher with ZooLab. The raffle closes this Friday 28 July and tickets are available for just £5 each here, with all proceeds being donated to Spread a Smile.

“We are extremely grateful to our friends at Camp Beaumont for their ongoing support. They are helping us reach new audiences, raise vital funds and spread even more smiles to seriously ill children and young people in hospital. A huge thank you to all of the team, camp attendees, raffle ticket buyers and donors for getting behind the Big Blue Bash and making a difference to our families.”  Lucy Jackson, Spread a Smile Chief Executive

Spread a Smile doesn’t receive any government funding and relies on the support and generosity of individuals and organisations such as Camp Beaumont to continue to spread smiles across the UK.

Please get in touch with us at fundraising@spreadasmile.org if you’d like to get involved and help make a difference when it’s needed most. Thank you.

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Abseiler extraordinaire

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We are extremely proud of each and every one of our fundraisers for going the extra mile to help raise vital funds for Spread a Smile’s work across the UK.

We’d like you to meet Daniel who recently joined Team Smile and fundraised to support seriously ill children and young people through our brilliant abseiling challenge.

“Hi, my name is Daniel and I am 14 years old. I recently took part in an abseil down the ArcelorMittal Orbit for the fabulous charity, Spread a Smile.

“I really enjoy doing things that other people find scary, so as soon as I heard about this opportunity I instantly knew that I wanted to get involved! I was super excited in the run up to the abseil and couldn’t wait for the day to arrive.

“The day itself was brilliant fun and I really enjoyed hanging out with the other people who were taking part – there were even a couple of people my age. My family came to cheer me on and I was really chuffed to have raised nearly £650 + gift aid!

“I didn’t find it too scary – the only bit which made me a bit apprehensive was when I had to step over the safety barrier and start walking down the building, as I was horizontal at this point.  But my mum said she was really scared watching me!  It was really cool having brilliant views of London while I came down. 

“I feel really proud of myself for having done something like this and for having raised so much money for such a brilliant charity, which is helping sick children – it feels really good.”

We can’t thank Daniel enough for his support and were so proud that his story was recently published in The Week Junior (22 July edition p29 – out for sale now). Well done Daniel!

If Daniel has inspired you, then why not get in touch by emailing fundraising@spreadasmile.org to find out more about fundraising for Spread a Smile. We’d love to hear from you.