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Welcome to the Cherry Trees Blog. Here you can find regular contributions from our challenge fundraisers, experienced care staff and guest bloggers who are experts in the field of disabilities, autism, special education, and inclusion projects.
We hope you enjoy reading each article and feel free to share with your friends and network. Any feedback on our blog articles feel free to pen a line to; [email protected]
Former Royal Marine Glen Lewis and his two old school friends – the Pecks brothers have given Cherry Trees their fundraising commitment, signing up to run the Manchester Marathon to raise money for us. On the 7th of April they will be heading up North to join thousands of other runners , on the 26.2 mile course, weaving round former textile factories and out to Old Trafford. In the first of our fresh blog posts, Glen's tells us about his training and how he's gone about fundraising for us. Read more
Equality and Diversity are hot topics right now. At Cherry Trees, how do we go about presenting work on diversity to a group of people who fall well within The Equality Act 2010 ? Read On.... Read more
Some people can't help themselves, some people don't know how to react and some people still refer to people with disabilities as 'surviving', 'poor things' and 'unfortunate'. What's it like being on the receiving end of other people's reactions if you have a disability but live a rounded and full life ? Our new columnist Debbie Boulter gives a first hand account. Read more
As part of National Volunteer Week 2019 we asked one of our 90 volunteers to share what it's been like joining our team of Cherry Trees volunteers and to recount how she helps out. Marion's account of a working life for a global brand spanning 30 years, to time now spent in the leafy surrounds of our Clandon charity show case her skills, qualities and how she helps in our fundraising office. Read more
A project to launch visual communication aids, aimed at people with disabilities is being piloted in Guildford this summer. PECS symbols are used in the place of words by thousands of people globally already. Their lack of display in public areas is noticeable though. Cherry Trees is leading a project to introduce them into several venues trialing their inclusion on signage and in reception areas around Guildford. Read more
It can be hard to think of new ways to raise money for charity. Celebration events are an easy win to help raise money - whilst celebrating your birthday, anniversary it's an opportunity to ask for donations rather than gifts. Joanna Vowles found this worked really well for her when she recently chose to fundraise for Cherry Trees for her birthday. Here in her guest blog , she shares what she did to raise money. Read more
Perhaps one of the most beautiful villages in the South East of England, Shere's self-contained community, and proximity to the Stunning Surrey Hills makes it a timeless treasure. Supporting this year's Shere Open Garden has been memorable for Anna who works in Cherry Trees Fundraising office. This account is about acknowledging the location of our charity, the support we receive and the types of things we get involved with to raise money. Read more
This week our columnist Debbie Boulter talks about the enjoyment and therapeutic effects of being submerged in water for children with autism. Thinking about the effect it has had on her own son as well as children across the years at Cherry Trees the sensory responses to the life giving element are profound. Read more
As the summer holidays come to a finish for another year one Cherry Trees parent recounts the realities of booking a foreign holiday abroad for her family. Navigating busy airports, foreign restaurants and getting onto the beach become different territories for a traveller with disabilities. She shares her tips to aid bookings for other families in future. Read more
On Saturday 21st September 2019, 10 employees of Martin Grant Homes stepped onto the foot of Red Pike mountain at 0630hrs. Having trained for months they were ready to tackle one of the hardest challenges the UK has to offer…24 of the highest Lake District Peaks in 24 Hours. Read this honest and tough write-up by Russell Kyle who took part. Read more
Cherry Trees primary aim is to prevent family break-up, knowing that the provision of respite care for children with disabilities can give their families a little time out from caring too. But charities like ours are not in abundance across the UK which means for many families there is no break from caring. We've joined a campaign to re-address a major absence in support services for families with a child with a disability. Read more
Families so often tell us one of the reasons they need our charities help is because of interrupted nights sleep linked to their child's sporadic or restless sleeping habits. In this months column Debbie Boulter reflects on sleep-less nights in her own home, whilst research conducted in wider society looks at disability and sleeping habits. Read on for more in our November column.... Read more