Melissa gave us a great overview of Home-Start Essex and the wide range of support they provide to families across the county. Their work includes helping parents and carers at home, running family support groups, offering wellbeing and behavioural support, providing essential items, and much more. The presentation also highlighted the many challenges families are facing, and just how valuable this support is in helping children get the best possible start in life.
The presentation also gave a real insight into just how much demand there is for their services. Since the pandemic, demand has increased by 134%, and in 2024–25 they supported over 2,000 children and more than 1,000 families across Essex. Melissa also shared some of the costs involved in delivering their work, which made the impact of fundraising even clearer. £89.48 could pay for a family to attend a SEND group for a month, £214.99 could fund a family group for 10 weeks, and £1,460.51 could support a family with a home-visiting mentor once a week for 6 months. A larger donation of £16,768.87 could fund a family group for up to 20 families for a whole year.
Melissa also talked through the different ways we can support the charity. This includes making one-off or monthly donations; taking part in challenge events such as the London Marathon or a sponsored hike; volunteering at events or with core services; sponsoring fundraising activities; holding our own events such as quizzes or coffee mornings; and donating essential items or gifts for families.
The session was attended by Esra, Hazara, Pearl, Evelyn and Shelley, who represented their departments and had the chance to hear more about the charity’s impact and the different ways we can get involved. It was a really interesting and worthwhile presentation, and it gave everyone a better understanding of how our fundraising and support can make a real difference.
We also enjoyed some fancy M&S biscuits and tea, which made the afternoon even better.
We’re looking forward to supporting Home-Start Essex over the year ahead and helping them continue the brilliant work they do for local families.
