Donation and Gifts to Honeypot House for Christmas.

Christmas Shoe Boxes. For a number of years we have collected hundreds of shoeboxes filled with toys, toiletries and smilar items for chidren who are carers for their parents.  Distribution is organised by Honeypot Charity. In 2020 Covid restrictions prevented the shoebox collections. However, all was not lost. In 2021 the pandemic was of course still with us and George and Anne succesfully took on the challenge again. See the report at the foot of this page. 

This Christmas (2020) Honeypot were still collecting new and unshoeboxed toys, toiletry items and the like. They also asked for any 'treasure' which they could use to make sure that the children do not miss out.  Earlier in the season we donated £500 to the charities fund and nearer Christmas a number of our members and friends and two of our regular schools donated a brilliant collections of items. These have been handed over to a delighted Honeypot. 

A letter of thanks was received by Rotarian George and his wife Anne Stephens from the National C.E.O. and is below. 

Christmas 2021

For the second Christmas running Covid prevented the usual showbox collection for the Honeypot children but George and Anne Stephens rounded up a wonderful hoard of 'treasure' from Rotarians, five local schools and Copythorne Explorer Scouts which was presented to Viv Carter of Honeypot. They  will be making a second delivery in January.

The Rotary Club had also made a donation of £300 which was doubled as a result of matching funding being released. 

The following letter of thanks was received from the National C.E.O. of Honeypot which explains how our donations will be used.

17 December 2021

Dear New Forest Rotary Club,

Thank you for your generous donation of £300 which I am delighted to say was doubled to £600 as a result of matched funding being released by your donation.

I take great pleasure in reporting that Honeypot’s £1million matched funding appeal exceeded all expectations. With your help and the help of an army of donors, £1,120,000 was raised in support of young carers.

The funds raised will enable Honeypot to move towards opening a third residential respite house to providing stress busting, life enhancing residential respite breaks for over 1,000 additional disadvantaged young carers each year. We will also be able to move to operating our two existing houses at full capacity, where we aim to run them 365 days a year for over 3,000 young carers annually.

Funds raised by our £1million+ matched funding appeal will also enable Honeypot to provide an enhanced range of Wrap-Round Services that meet more of the needs of young carers, including: -

• After school clubs for up to 16 weeks a year three times a week, for a child, to alleviate the loneliness and isolation of caring.

• Social and Emotional Active Learning, to boost young carers confidence to succeed in education and re-dress the underperformance of young carers at school that has been clearly identified by research.

• Upgrade the facilities at our existing Houses, including an all-weather, year- round swimming pool for children at Honeypot House, Hampshire.

• Provide Wellbeing Grants to disadvantaged young carers, to provide them with essential life items they lack, such as a back- to- school kit, with shoes, clothes, satchel, and lunch box.

Thank you for being an important part of our crowdfunding appeal, the combined power of which will change the lives of thousands of young carers for good.

Young carers are society’s unsung heroes. Heroes like them, needed Heroes like you. Thank you for being there for young carers at a time when they have never needed your support and Honeypot’s life enhancing services more.

With renewed thanks

Simmi Woodwal

Chief Executive Officer