Posts Tagged :

families

Summer Party 2025: What an amazing day

 780 400 Susie
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On Thursday 24 July, Spread a Smile once again hosted our wonderful Summer Party, this year sponsored by our friends from BC Partners and held at Coram’s Fields in London.

It was an incredible day, filled with fun, joy and laughter and we welcomed 751 children, young people and family members supported by Spread a Smile, along and colleagues from our NHS hospital partners for a day full of exciting activities, performances and treats. To ensure that our VIP guests felt as comfortable and as special as possible, the day consisted of a morning and an afternoon party, enabling us to share the fun with even more of the families we support.

“I just wanted to say a huge thank you for all the effort and hard work that obviously went in to arranging the Summer Party today. We had an absolutely wonderful time and are incredibly grateful to have been able to join you. There were such fantastic activities to get stuck into. Thank you for all that you do and for finding such brilliant ways to spread a smile!” Tasha and Darcey

The Spread a Smile team once again went all out to put on our best party yet, with over 150 brilliant volunteers giving up their time to help run a range of different stalls and activities including arts and crafts, face painting, glitter tattoos, a sensory area, mini golf, animal petting with Anna’s Animals, and a pop-up arcade. Our friends at the LEGO Group brought plenty of LEGO for the children to make their own creations, and Hasbro also brought their team and an interactive games and Play-Doh station. Guests also enjoyed making their own gorgeous flower crowns with Freddie’s Flowers, and there were plenty of delicious treats on the go from our friends from Pan-n-Ice, Mildreds, Lola’s Cupcakes and the Wandering Pizza Company.

As always, Spread a Smile’s incredible team of entertainers filled the day with music, singing, dancing, bubbles, magic, poetry and so much more. Our therapy dogs Harry and Thomas, along with owners Tara and Olivia, were also there to join in the fun, meeting lots of new and familiar friends, including Mickey and Minne Mouse, Stitch, Spiderman, Elsa, Mummy Pig and the new baby Evie.

“Thank you for hosting the most incredible Summer Party. We’ve left with our hearts full and bubba has the biggest smile on her face. She was so excited to share her day with her grandparents when we got home. I haven’t seen her this excited in a while. You guys are real life superheroes!” Mum, Kheelna

We are extremely proud to be able to deliver such special days out for seriously ill children and their families to enjoy. The Summer Party is always full of so much happiness and joy, and a wonderful opportunity for our guests to relax and unwind and enjoy seeing their children have a fantastic and stress-free day out.

“Thank you, Spread a Smile for a wonderful morning. You are all truly incredible! We feel so lucky to be supported by you and for the smiles you are forever giving Polly.” Mum, Lauren

We are extremely grateful to all our wonderful volunteers for giving up their time to make the day possible. A special thanks to our friends from BC Partners for sponsoring the event and Children with Cancer UK for their ongoing support. Also, to the brilliant companies and supporters who donated supplies, gifts, food and drink to help us provide the best experience possible: Child’s Farm, Coconut Lane, Derwent Art, Goppus, Hasbro, Keel Toys, Kidjo, Putt Party, Super Sparrow, Swizzels and YETI.

“I just wanted to say thank you for having us as volunteers at today’s party, I thought both went amazingly and not even the rain could have dampened the vibes and how much the families were enjoying themselves, it was truly such a joy to have been able to soak it all up. You guys make such positive impact and every family I spoke to were hugely complimentary about the work spread a smile do.”

Thank you as always to the Spread a Smile team and all our amazing families for joining us and making our Summer Party 2025 a triumph – we can’t wait for the next one.

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

 

 

Watch our Spread a Smile Summer Party 2025 film here…

Valentine’s event gets the party started

 780 400 Susie
By:

On Thursday 20 February Spread a Smile held a brilliant Valentine’s Party at the Brunswick Art Gallery for some of the seriously ill children we support and their families.

The day was filled with lots of valentine’s themed art activities including canvas painting, coaster designing and decorating heart shaped trinket boxes with gems, sequins and heart shaped stickers. There was also a ‘selfie mirror’ with props, a DJ and live singer, a magic show from Mr Magic, face painting, and a scavenger hunt.

Our guests enjoyed a sweet stand, pizza, chicken and chips and yummy cupcakes and brownies, generously donated by our friends at Lola’s Cupcakes.

Towards the end of the party, everyone had the chance to have a go on the DJ decks and sing songs of their choice which was such a special moment as everyone gather around and cheered one another on. From ‘Popular’ to ‘Let it Go’ with a bit of AC/DC thrown in too – the families all clapped and cheered as the children felt comfortable enough to sing in front of everyone. It was a really special moment for everyone in the room.

This was Spread a Smile’s second time hosting an event at the Brunswick Art Gallery and the day was summed up by Mum Claire and her daughter Eva who sent us the following message after the event:

“What a wonderful day full of crafting, fun, laughter, trickery, music and happy proud tears!

“Each child and their family was made feel so special and encouraged and as always are bellies and hearts were filled. From Tik Toks to DJ-ing, Karaoke and Broadway showcases, the talent and encouragement in the room was something to behold.

“Spread a Smile doesn’t just spread smiles, they spread confidence and create a safe space no matter the venue for children and families to become so comfortable that barriers drop and families support each other.

“Hospitals and treatments in their nature create isolation which can hinder children in their ability to interact with their peers. They can lose out on forming and building these key skills, but Spread a Smile helps to rebuild their resilience.

“Over the last year we have seen our shy and reserved child blossom into a more confident pre-teen. To see her supporting the magician and leading the room in a song was monumental. We are very lucky to have you all championing each child to remember what childhood should and can be – FUN!”

Every year, Spread a Smile organises events like this to support families with seriously ill children. They range from art events, to theatre trips, foodie experiences, zoo outings and so much more and it’s thanks to our generous supporters and fundraisers that we are able to continue to provide these important experiences for families going through the worst of times.

Please do get in touch to find out more about our events or how you can get involved to support this vital work which brings joy and happiness during the darkest of times.

Support our Summer Party

 780 400 Susie
By:

On Thursday 25 July, over 400 guests will join us for the annual Spread a Smile Summer Party, described by one parent as “the most fun per square metre in London.”

The Summer Party is a wonderful free event where we welcome the seriously ill children and young people we support along with their siblings and family members for a fun-filled day with loads of activities, entertainment and treats.

The party will take place at Coram’s Fields because of its proximity to Great Ormond Street Hospital, which means even more children receiving treatment will be able to join us.

Families can register to join our Summer Party here.

We want to make this our best Summer Party yet and give our families some very happy memories to treasure forever. Please donate what you can to help us to do just that.

£50 could pay for glitter tattoo kits so we can adorn all the guests with a sparkly tattoo

£100 could pay for nail varnish for our nail bar and as take-home gifts afterwards (which is for infection control purposes)

£500 could pay for all the drinks at the party

£750 could pay for reusable water bottles to gift to all children at the party

£1,000 could pay for costumes for our fancy dress corner

£1,500 could pay for chocolate, sweets, crisps and fruit

£2,500 could pay for art supplies for arts and crafts activities, including tote bag decorating, friendship bracelet making and lots more.

Donate here!

Thank you so much for your support.

Our Summer Party is back!

 780 400 Susie
By:

Exciting news! The Spread a Smile Summer Party for the families we support will return to Coram’s Fields, London, on Thursday 25 July.

This very special free event will welcome hundreds of children and young people supported by Spread a Smile

along with their siblings, families and carers to spend a magical fun filled day with us. With stalls, games, activities, singing, music, magic, balloons, bubbles, delicious food and so much more, the aim is to provide an opportunity for families to enjoy a day out together, away from the pressures of treatment and illness.

Register here

Laura Walter, Director of Services for Spread a Smile said, “The whole Spread a Smile team is getting so excited for our annual Summer Party as it’s a real highlight of the year for everyone involved. As usual we’ve been working hard to make sure this year’s event is the biggest and best yet, with amazing support from some of our partners. There’ll be slime making with Slime Planet, a LEGO station, games and Play-Doh fun with Hasbro, biscuit decorating with McVitie’s, animal experiences with Anna’s Animals and loads of arts and crafts activities led by the Spread a Smile team and volunteers. This year we’ll also welcome our friends from Freddie’s Flowers for flower crown making, host an interactive gaming tent and be on the lookout for footballing talent with our giant inflatable football goal.

“There will be a chance to meet many of the Spread a Smile entertainers who will be there performing and spreading smiles and our VIP guests can look forward to lots of delicious treats from our wonderful friends at Lola’s cupcakes, Brigit’s Bakery, Mildred’s and the Wandering Pizza Company.

“We are looking forward to treating lots of the children and young people we support, along with their siblings and families to a very special fun day making lasting memories.”

Find out how you can support our 2024 Summer Party!

Pre-registration is required to attend, and you can sign up for free here.

Date: Thursday 25 July, 11am-3pm

Where: Coram’s Fields, 93 Guildford Street, London WC1N 1DN

Who’s it for? Families with children and young people up to the age of 18 with a long-term illness or condition and/or under ongoing care with a UK NHS hospital. We welcome siblings and family members too.

Family event for teens at Mallow

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Mallow is a 100% plant-based restaurant in the heart of London’s Borough Market and earlier this month Spread a Smile welcomed some of the families we support to the restaurant for a delicious vegan brunch.

 

The event was specifically aimed at young people over the age of 12 and a bespoke, engaging opportunity for them to enjoy themselves and meet other young people in a beautiful setting over brunch. Being a teenager in hospital and undergoing treatment for serious illness can feel extremely challenging when you have to spend long periods of time away from friends and social activities. The entertainment options often feel much more limited, and it can prove to be an extremely isolating time.

 

The brunch provided a special time for our teens to be teenagers together and it was lovely to see everyone chatting away together and spending quality time with their families.

 

As usual, we made sure our Spread a Smile entertainers brought some extra joy to the morning, with our spontaneous poet Judge the Poet sharing his talents and Rosie providing music and singing to help spread smiles.

 

Mallow is the sister venue of Mildred’s restaurants who have partnered with and supported Spread a Smile for a number of years. We are so grateful to the amazing team at mallow for making us so welcome and to everyone from Mallow and Mildred’s for going the extra mile to help provide these wonderful experiences for our families.

 

Please get in touch if you’d like to explore ways to support Spread a Smile through our creative partnership opportunities.