Posts By :

Susie

Art at The Christie, Manchester

 780 400 Susie
By:

Every month, our entertainers spend time at The Christie Hospital, Manchester, supporting young patients receiving treatment for cancer in The Proton Beam Therapy Centre. The visits mark an exciting time for Spread a Smile as we develop our work supporting seriously ill children and their families in the North West of England.

Spread a Smile Artist, Esther recently joined the charity and we spoke to her about her work supporting Spread a Smile to bring our art initiatives into the hospital including personalising radiotherapy masks for patients undergoing treatment at the Centre.

“I was familiar with the work of Spread a Smile though a friend who works for the charity and was delighted when she reached out after seeing my work as an artist on social media.

“Art was always my favourite subject at school and I have always loved to draw and make things. I studied fashion at University and have had multiple jobs in the creative space for multiple, large companies. I left my office job last year to focus all my time on my own creative business and in that same week, Spread a Smile were in touch. I’m based in the North West and my friend explained that the charity was developing their work in that area. It felt like it was meant to be! Meeting some of the wider team during the interview process underlined just how special the charity is. Everyone is so warm and friendly. Now I get to share my passion for creativity and art with the children, young people and their families at the hospital. 

“The Christie Hospital is such a bright place, with a positive energy and atmosphere. They have a playroom with books and toys, along with tables and chairs that I can set the art up on. It feels like a privilege to spend time with the children receiving treatment there. They can come in feeling unwell from treatment or a bit unsure meeting new people for the first time, but the next minute they can be chatting and laughing with you. It is very inspiring.

“I initially spent a lot of time listening to how the team interacted with the children, learning how to support them best. During the art sessions, I provide different options suitable for different ages, so I might take line drawings for children to colour in, stickers to make pictures, bracelet making, wreath making, decorating pumpkin drawings or materials to create Christmas cards.

“I love the work I do helping to personalise radiotherapy masks which can look so clinical and intimidating at the start. The child or their parents let me know what they would like on the mask – a character or something they love or enjoy. So far I have been asked for Teletubbies, boxing, Fortnite, Pokemon, Spiderman and Jo Jo & Gran Gran. I use paint pens to illustrate the mask and create something really personal for each child.

“My hope is that painting the masks helps them to feel more familiar and colourful and less intimidating and I’ve received some really positive feedback so far.

“I feel so much empathy for the families I meet. When I was 21 I was diagnosed with a serious, lifelong health condition which changed my life, involving multiple stays in hospitals and frequent check-ups. As an adult I know how scary it is to receive a life-changing diagnosis – it must be so much harder for a child. By taking arts and crafts into hospital to help entertain and pass the time, I feel I can help to bring some joy, relief and distraction from what they are going through. Being able to help with the masks feels like such a privilege.  

“I feel so grateful to be working with such an amazing charity. Art can make such a positive difference and I’m so proud to be able to share art to uplift and bring joy when it’s needed most.”

Our 2023-24 Annual Report

 780 400 Susie
By:

We are delighted to share our 2023/24 Annual Report with you.

We hope you enjoy reading about our achievements during this time, spreading smiles and joy to seriously ill children and their families and working closely with our NHS hospital and hospice partners.

Thank you for being part of the Spread a Smile family and for your ongoing support and commitment.

Click here to view the report.

Our 2025 Winter Party

 780 400 Susie
By:

On Saturday 18 January we kicked off 2025 in style with an amazing Winter Party at St Mary’s Marylebone London.

It was an incredible day which saw us welcome nearly 500 of the children and young people we support including their families.

Held over two floors, this very special family event was packed full of different stalls and activities for our VIP guests to enjoy, run by the Spread a Smile team and over 70 brilliant volunteers.  There was something for everyone including gingerbread biscuit decorating, nail art, face painting, glitter tattoos, friendship bracelet making, arts and crafts, LEGO, plant pot decorating and more.

“We had the BEST time at the Winter Party – thank you so much Spread a Smile! Jacob and Kaitlin had so much fun and the staff and all the volunteers were so nice. Marina as always did the most amazing face painting and Jacob couldn’t wait to see Tasha and Nick again. We had a fantastic day and met some new lovely families there and the children loved the goodies they came home with. They were spoilt with things to make and do. Thank you all so much.” Lucy, Mum to Jacob and Kaitlin

We were joined by All About Anna’s Animals who brought along some gorgeous animals to hold and learn more about including a snake, tortoise and tarantula. Guests also enjoyed fun on our bumper cars, making flower crowns with our friends from Freddie’s Flowers, slime with Slime Planet, a Formula 1 driving experience from 4-Events, a Silent Disco thanks to the Silent Disco Company and a cool 360 video booth from Choclato.

Our brilliant team of Spread a Smile entertainers joined us to fill the day with music, singing, dancing, bubbles, magic, poetry and much more. Guests also enjoyed the world premiere of the first ever Spread a Smile pantomime. (Oh yes they did!)  Elsa from Frozen welcomed children to the stage for a dance and a sing-a-long and our Therapy Dogs Thomas and Smartie loved meeting guests.

To keep everyone going, we put on food and treats galore, including Sushi rolls from SushiDog, delicious pizzas from Wandering Pizza Company, sweet treats from Funshine Candy Floss and yummy cupcakes and treats from our friends at Lola’s Cupcake and Mildreds. We also made sure parents and carers were given a special self-care moment with hand massages, aromatherapy plus hairdressing by Elle and Karen Clancy.

We are extremely proud to deliver days such as this for the families we support and it was lovely to see so many of them relaxing and meeting the team and other families. We were also delighted to welcome some of our Trustees to share in the magic of this very special day.

Thank you to our friends from Constellia and Children with Cancer UK for generously supported this event. Also, to our wonderful volunteers for giving up their time to make the day possible and those who donated supplies, food and drink. Shout out to C. Hoare & Co, Hain Daniels, Hasbro, Lola’s Cupcakes, LMAC Group, Mildreds, Peel Hunt, Redstor, Sidekick Management, the LEGO Group and XTX Markets.

Thank you to all of our friends, families and colleagues for joining us and making our Winter Party 2025 one to remember. Watch this space for details of our Summer Party.

To help ensure we can continue to spread smiles to seriously ill children and young people, please donate here. Thank you.

If you would like to find out about attending our family events in the future, please register for our services and sign up to receive our Family Newsletter here.

George’s story…

 780 400 Susie
By:

George was just three years old when he was diagnosed with cancer.

Spread a Smile supported George and his parents, Lisa and David, during George’s treatment. We were there during some of the most difficult times, bringing important moments of respite, fun and happiness.

We are so grateful to Lisa and David for allowing us to tell their story.

Please take a moment to watch and share George’s story below. And we’d love to hear from you if you or your company can help ensure Spread a Smile can continue to be there for seriously ill children and their families during the darkest of times.

You can also donate at spreadasmile.org/donate

Thank you.

In memory of George.

Outings and events for the whole family

 780 400 Susie
By:

We know that everyone in a family is deeply affected by the illness of a child or sibling. It can mean that families are separated for long periods of time during treatment phases, with routines and day-to-day life changing to manage the demands of treatment plans and medical procedures.

Spread a Smile organises outings, events and activities that 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.

Gary Broadway (Family Events Coordinator) and Ellen Walker (Head of Family Events)

Our Head of Family Events, Ellen Walker, shared a bit more about our family events programme and why it is so important.

“Illness can bring with it huge amounts of stress and pressure for the families we support. There often isn’t much time for outings or fun family activities and sometimes there can be added financial pressures should one parent need to stop working to help care for an unwell child.

“Our family events programme aims to support families going through these extremely difficult situations. All of our outings are completely free of charge and range from trips to the theatre to see shows such as The Lion King, zoo visits, tea parties, workshops, cinema outings, parties, Formula 1 days, cooking experiences and so much more.

“The whole family is invited and it’s a chance for them to just relax and have fun. They can also meet and share with other families who have been through similar experiences. We make the events as fun as possible with lots of food, drinks and treats. Plus, our amazing entertainers are always on hand with music, magic, face-painting, arts and crafts and so much more. There’s such a positive, party atmosphere and a real sense of family and community and we receive such lovely feedback after events, with parents telling us the difference they have made. It’s a chance for them to create happy memories together and that is so important.

“So far this year, we’ve curated 36 brilliant events for the families, welcoming hundreds of children along with their siblings and family members. The majority are focussed in around the London area to correspond with our services provision, and we try to make sure they appeal to a range of ages, also catering for all family members that join us. This year we have introduced more events aimed at teenagers and also children with additional needs.

“Our next event is our annual Winter Party when we hope to welcome over 600 people during the day. It’s looking set to be an incredible event with delicious food stands, sweet treats, games, activities, entertainment and more. We also have an annual Summer Party in Coram’s Fields which is wonderful and much loved by our families. It’s location means that in-patients from Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) are able to come down and spend a bit of time with us should they be well enough to do so.

“As we head into 2025, we aim to provide up to four events a month, meaning well over 40 events this year. We’re always extremely grateful to our volunteers who give up their time to support our events and make sure they are as successful as possible. Also to our wonderful supporters for sponsoring or helping to fund them. We’re really excited about our plans this year and are looking forward to welcoming more families, helping them to create a bank of happy memories.

You can find out more about our family events here. If you are company who would like to support or sponsor our events, please do get in touch with us by email.

Supporting our NHS hospital and hospice partners

 780 400 Susie
By:

As a charity, our aim is to provide entertainment and support to children struggling with serious and chronic illnesses and conditions. A large part of our work achieving this is by working with NHS hospital and hospice partners to reach children and young people receiving treatment and care in their settings.

We currently work in partnership with 35 NHS hospitals and 6 hospices and in today’s blog, our Director of Services, Laura Walter, shares more about this important area of our work.

“Spread a Smile’s journey started nearly 12 years ago in Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) when our Co-Founders started taking a small team of entertainers in twice a month to visit and provide entertainment to young patients on the wards. It wasn’t long before word of our work spread and demand for our in-hospital services started to grow, leading to expansion into other large specialist children’s hospitals and hospitals offering specialist care for young people such as St Mary’s Hospital, The Evelina Children’s Hospital, University College Hospital (UCLH).

“Being a London based charity, the natural focus for expansion has been London and surrounding areas and our partnerships have often started with approaches by hospitals for support, to compliment existing play services and help fill gaps in resource to provide children with distraction and opportunities for play. 

“When the Covid pandemic hit, we were no longer able to go into hospital to visit children in person. This was devastating for everyone involved and at a time where children in hospital needed play opportunities, support, and distraction more than ever before. So, we quickly started to offer our services virtually – initially to our hospital partners and any children struggling with illness who needed support. As a result, this has led us to expand our services beyond London to larger specialist children’s hospitals across England such as Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and Nottingham Children’s Hospital, offering virtual entertainment that can be accessed from anywhere.

“In recent years, we have also started to support smaller District General Hospitals around London, prioritising those with Paediatric Oncology Shared Care Units (POSCU). These hospitals often don’t have access to the same resources and support in areas such as play and entertainment. Our aim is to provide a regular touchpoint for young patients coming through these hospitals, giving them ways to access our services should they be referred somewhere else or need us virtually. 

“Going forward, demand for our services is ever growing and we have spent time over the past few months looking at this need and how we can provide the best support with the most impact. As we head into 2025/26, we’ll be focussing on equalising support across our London based specialist hospitals and continuing to try and reach as many children and young people as possible with serious and chronic illnesses in this area. We know from experience, that this is where our work can have the most impact.  We will also continue to support our current 6 hospice and District General Hospital partners.

“Beyond that, we’ll be developing our work supporting specialist children’s hospitals across the country with the aim of eventually supporting every one of these settings in England. This piece of work has already started with our work in the North West providing in person visits monthly to The Christie Hospital in Manchester and we are looking forward to expanding into two more hospitals in the North West over the coming year.

“When we visit a hospital, although the partnership may focus on supporting the most seriously unwell children, no child is ever left out. Our entertainers can be found singing to children in reception areas, waiting for general appointments, doing magic tricks for parents in waiting rooms and generally spreading smiles to any child visiting a hospital.

“Our plan is to do what we do now as well as possible and to maximum effect. Then as we grow as a charity we’re excited to reach into new areas and new parts of the country, spreading the Spread a Smile magic to as many families that need us as possible.”

To stay up to date about our plans and work, please sign up to our monthly e-newsletter. We’d also love to hear from you if you or your company can support or fundraise for us in any way. Email the team today at fundraising@spreadasmile.org

Thank you.

Our entertainers – meet Collette

 780 400 Susie
By:

Spread a Smile’s talented team of entertainers put the ‘smile’ in Spread a Smile and include musicians, singers, magicians, performers, artists, poets, balloon modellers and therapy dogs. Each one is incredibly skilled, able to use their talents to bring a little bit of joy to seriously ill children and their families during some of the most challenging times of their lives.

Collette has been with Spread a Smile since the charity was founded in 2013. Originally one of our entertainers, today Collette is a Visit Manager, entertainer and a much loved and recognised member of the team, leading regular visits to our hospital and hospice partners and part of our 100-strong entertainer team.

Collette said, “I originally met Spread a Smile Co-Founder, Josephine, when I was performing at a gig for her husband’s birthday. She told me that she and her friend Vanessa were starting the charity and asked if I would come on board as a singer to help entertain children at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). Naturally I jumped at the chance.

“In those early days, I was one of five entertainers who joined Josephine and Vanessa twice a month to visit children and young people receiving treatment at GOSH. Along with brilliant talents such as Mr Magic and Judge the Poet, we would bring music, singing, magic, poetry and fun onto the wards. The fact that all three of us still work for the charity to this day is a testament to the wonderful organisation that Josephine and Vanessa have created.

“At the time, there was nothing really like what Spread a Smile was offering to our hospital partners. We would receive so much positive feedback from patients, families and staff alike, telling us what a breath of fresh air we were and how we were helping to bring some light and happiness during some really difficult times for children on the wards. We all knew really early on how important Spread a Smile’s work was and it was easy to see how this drove Josephine and Vanessa on to grow the charity and reach even more young people in even more hospital settings.

“I have learnt so much working for Spread a Smile, as a person, singer and entertainer. To be able to use something I love to bring joy to others is huge and every day I feel grateful to have been given the opportunity to help make a difference. We work really hard to make sure our visits and interactions are tailored to each child’s needs. Our fairies bring so much joy to the younger children we meet for example and our team includes magicians that appeal to a range of ages. As a singer, I often receive wildly different requests for songs, from Disney to the latest Number 1, so it’s important to stay up to date with what’s out there and what’s popular. Talking about music is always a great conversation starter and it focuses in on the child straight away. It’s about what they like and want to hear and let’s them know that we are there just for them. The children are the ones making the decisions for a change which is really important when they are dealing with serious illness as a lot of autonomy around day-to-day life and childhood experiences can be lost.

“I am lucky to work with some incredibly talented entertainers (now friends) and every day I see the difference music, magic or distraction of any kind can make to a child in hospital. It can help to break up long hours and days of boredom in hospital or provide a much needed distraction from pain and the worries of illness and treatments. As entertainers, we are a friendly face when it’s needed most.  

“Knowing that the children and also staff in hospital look forward to our visits means so much. Being a Spread a Smile entertainer is one of the most valuable things I will ever do, and I am proud to continue to be part of this wonderful charity.”

To find out more about our work, please click here.

Three Peaks Challenge Discount

 780 400 Susie
By:

Join us for our National Three Peaks Challenge from Friday 4 – Sunday 6 July 2025 and save 50% off the registration fee if you sign up by 31 January using our exclusive SMILE50 discount code.

Get ready for a fast-paced and physically challenging adventure, as you take on the three highest peaks in England, Scotland and Wales: Ben Nevis (1,344m), Scafell Pike (978m) and Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) (1,085m).

Over the course of two days, you will trek around 26 miles and ascend to a total height of almost 3,000m. This is a serious and tough challenge which requires a good level of fitness, as well as plenty of grit and determination. Ultimately, however, your hard work will be rewarded with spectacular views and a huge sense of achievement. Plus you’ll be raising vital funds to help spread smiles to seriously ill children and their families.

You can find the full itinerary and details here or email Rimi at rimi@spreadasmile.org to chat about what’s involved.

New year, new challenge

 780 400 Susie
By:

As we head into the New Year, it’s the perfect time to take on your next challenge and make a meaningful difference.

Whether you’re looking to push your limits in fitness, bring your team together for a memorable adventure, or tick off a personal goal, we’ve got an event for you. Check out our challenges page here for inspiration or why not take on…

London Landmarks 2023You can also find a full list of exciting marathons and half marathons around the country here. And enjoy 50% off the registration fee for our Three Peaks Challenge when you sign up by 31 January. (Using the code SMILE50).

Every penny you raise will bring joy to children facing serious illnesses, creating moments of happiness when they’re needed most.

Make this year one to remember. The challenge starts with YOU.

For more information or if you have any questions please contact rimi@spreadasmile.org.

Spread a Smile on Sky News

 780 400 Susie
By:

On the morning of 23 December, we were delighted to be invited onto Sky News to talk about our Christmas initiatives, spreading smiles to seriously ill children and young people.

Spread a Smile Chief Executive, Lucy Jackson along with our entertainer, Betty the Elf were interviewed live on Sky News talking about our in-person visits to 15 NHS hospitals across London, alongside our Smile Hamper initiative.

You can watch the interview below.