Spread a little magic for lone parents and kids this Christmas

 Help share homeless women’s charity YWCA Yorkshire’s Christmas Wishlist and make a big difference to local children and mums. 

All year round, YWCA Yorkshire supports women, children and families out of difficult and dangerous situations and into a safe place where they can build a better future for themselves. In many ways, Christmastime can compound the hardship experienced by struggling families. Domestic violence increases, finances are exhausted, relationship breakdowns are exacerbated, and children feel their own poverty more acutely than ever. 

Families in crisis don’t have the capacity for Christmas presents festive meals or magical experiences. The young women and their babies supported by YWCA Yorkshire in Sheffield are homeless and living in Peile House hostel accessing trauma-informed support. The lone-parents and children supported by YWCA Yorkshire in Doncaster and Rotherham, often don’t have family and friends to reach out to over the Christmas holidays, leading to increased levels of loneliness, isolation and poor mental health.  

More than half of the women supported by YWCA Yorkshire have experienced domestic violence or sexual abuse, and more than 80 percent have poor mental health.   

Charity Ambassador, Zara Stanley, is someone who was supported by YWCA Yorkshire after her relationship broke down and she found herself with a newborn to care for without a safe place to live. Zara said: “Christmas can be tough for a lot of people and it’s especially tough when you are hard up, on your own with a child, and trying to cope with all the things that have already happened to you in your life.  

“YWCA Yorkshire wants to make sure that everyone they support feels connected and cared for this Christmas. They want to make sure that every little kid has a present to open on Christmas Day. 

“If people who can, took the time to buy that one extra gift this Christmas, then together we can make sure that nobody goes without. For the mum or the kid who gets that present delivered by their Project Worker when they weren’t expecting anything at all – it really can feel magical.” 

This December, take a moment during your Christmas shop, to have a look at the YWCA Yorkshire Christmas Wishlist. Gifting a small item from this list could make a huge difference to a young person, lone parent or child in Rotherham, Sheffield and Doncaster this Christmas.