My Journey Begins at With Kids, Glasgow

After recently moving to Glasgow from N.Ireland a few months ago, I knew I wanted to get involved in a local charity by volunteering! 

I came across the With Kids website one day, and was immediately struck by their positive, vibrant atmosphere. Being part of a charity who are always enthusiastic about their work was definitely something that I wanted to be involved in.

My interest and experience in social media and online marketing meant that I was excited about bringing these skills into the With Kids team. Collaborating with fatBuzz alongside the charity enables me to contribute my own ideas about how we can reach more people.  

I’ll be working on generating content for publishing online such as interesting articles, videos, information for blog posts, designing e-newsletter templates and banners as well as having fun, and enjoying the chocolate treats that often circulate the office!

Volunteering for With Kids is a great way to meet new people alongside developing skills and helping vulnerable children and families in the East End of Glasgow. I’ll be blogging about the exciting things I’ll be getting up to over the next while, and make sure to keep an eye out for a video coming up so you can meet me!

You can keep up-to-date with Heather and With Kids on Facebook and Twitter!

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Fundraising for With Kids

Have you been sticking to your New Year Resolutions? At With Kids, we have slipped up more than a few times now and had one too many biscuits!

Do you need a little help in getting back on the right track? By setting yourself a challenging goal like running a 10k you could get fit while fundraising to help others in need.

We would love you to get involved with fundraising for With Kids!

You might have your own ideas of how you would like to do this or if you would like to discuss various options then please contact us and we will support you in all of your endeavors.

If you have any fundraising ideas or if you would like to get involved - please contact Suzy on 0141 550 5770.

You can download our With Kids Sponsor Form and our Gift Aid Donation Form.

Pop over to Facebook and Twitter to let us know your fundraising ideas and to help inspire others!

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Ladies Lunch Success!

With Kids would like to thanks everyone for attending their Ladies Lunch, held at 29 Glasgow on Sunday 27th January 2013.

Just over 100 ladies attended the lunch to support With Kids and helped to raise vital funds of around £10,000!



There are a few special thanks we would like to make in helping to make the event such a success!

A very special thank you to With Kids Ambassador, Kathleen McDermott, for hosting the lunch, and also to the entertainment - including the wonderful Edward Reid, semifinalist on Britain’s Got Talent and tribute band Could it Be Take That.

We would also like to say a special thanks to fatBuzz for organising the event!

Finally we are only able to help so many vulnerable children and families thanks to your continued support!

We'll be posting more photos of the lunch onto our Facebook page, so look out for yourself and make sure you get tagging!

If you would like to volunteer or fundraise for With Kids, please get in touch by calling us on - 0141 550 5770 or drop us an email.

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What's going on at With Kids

With Kids run a variety of free groups, workshops and events which you can participate in. However there are limited spaces so we recommend that you book early to avoid disappointment. 

In order to keep you up-to-date with what's going on at With Kids, we are starting a new fortnightly email bulletin! Please join us for news and views from the sector. You can sign up online HERE.

To book a place at one of our activities or if you have any enquiries - you can give Suzy a call on 0141 550 5770.

We're always adding new things to our programme, so why not give us a call to find out what's happening each month. Or if you've got an idea for a group or workshop - get in touch!

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Thank you and Merry Christmas...

Merry Christmas everyone! Santa has delivered his presents to the children at With Kids early! We've had such a successful Christmas party this year with plenty of smiling faces, tasty food, great fun and festive cheer.

We really do appreciate each and everyone of you who has donated. However we wanted to say a few very special thanks to Tommy Keay, Julie, Sharon and all the staff at Calton Fire Station who went above and beyond the call of duty in helping - there is no thanks in the world that can do you justice.

David Smith and his family for volunteering - the time they gave was astounding. Thank you to our other brilliant volunteers - Laura, Anna, Lorraine and Dean!

Unite for humphing a squillion tables and chairs and for all their help this year. And to the Thistle Hotel for giving us tables and chairs.

Our fantastic Ambassador Ross Morrison for coming along with his family and giving a much needed hand.

Mortons for for donating cakes and trifles and Joe Smith for his marvellous DJing skills.

All the With Kids staff and (very) long suffering friends and family who all pitched in. And to everyone that donated, helped and spread the word - a huge thank you. We literally couldn't have done it without you - your support has been incredible and it's you that's made it all possible.

We helped 60 families this year with presents and food hampers for Christmas. We had 55 families attend our party and all got a present from Santa who kindly came all the way from the North Pole to hand them out.

To all of the With Kids supporters, donators, friends and to all our lovely families we would like to wish you all a very very Merry Christmas and an extremely prosperous 2013!

Keep an eye out for our photos which will be posted very soon!

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With Kids Ladies Lunch - 29Glasgow

With Kids would like to invite you to be part of our inaugural Ladies Lunch, taking place in 29 Private Members Club on Sunday 27th January 2013. With Kids seek to break the cycle of deprivation by intervening in the lives of young children with play therapy schemes that seek to strengthen their self esteem and bring out their innate gifts.

The Ladies Lunch promises to be an afternoon you and your guests will not forget and you will help raise funds for some of Glasgow and Edinburgh’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable children.

The afternoon, hosted by With Kids Ambassador Kathleen McDermott, will begin with a champagne reception, followed by a delicious 2-course lunch, and will include entertainment by the fabulous Edward Reid - semifinalist on Britain’s Got Talent and tribute band Could it Be Take That.

The event will be organised by Fatbuzz in aid of With Kids, the charity that seeks to offer a new approach to help vulnerable children and families.

There are a variety of ways in which you can help. You could become a sponsor for the afternoon or you could take a table. A table for 10 is priced at £500 or individual tickets can be bought for £50.

If you are unable to attend perhaps, you could help in some other way? We are looking for auction and raffle prizes or maybe you would simply like to make a donation?

To book a ticket, or table, please email events@fatbuzz.com

You can now follow With Kids Glasgow and Edinburgh on Twitter, where you can keep up to date with our latest news and information.

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With Kids article in The Guardian

Here at With Kids it is extremely important for us to highlight that austerity and poverty can hit anyone at any given time, no matter what their background or circumstance is.

Over the past few months we have tried to stress how vitally important your donations are to our Christmas Appeal - but Kevin McKenna's column in The Guardian on December 9 articulated it better than we could have ever hoped for.

The reality of real poverty can be witnessed all over Glasgow this Christmas which is why we work with vulnerable and isolated families in the East End of Glasgow. At any one time, we are in contact with 120 families caring for 336 children.

But to reach all of the children and their families who will need emergency help this Christmas there would need to be another 10 charities such as With Kids. We have witnessed massive reductions in the disposable incomes of the families we help due to a combination of increasing food prices, huge increases in fuel costs and the UK Government's cuts in welfare benefits, as outlined recently by Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne.

If you have yet to read the article then I highly recommend you do. This is a very interesting and sobering article that hits home with families across Glasgow and beyond - which you can read here. Via The Guardian.

Thank you Kevin for highlighting these issues that are closer to home that many may know.

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