Think of the children

Pudsey Bear was a surprise visitor to Victoria Brook Day Nursery, Chadderton, which held its own event for Children in Need.

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FROM parachute jumps to custard pie throwing, Oldhamers have been doing their bit to raise money for Children in Need.

At Victoria Brook Day Nursery, tots donned their safety gear and pushed their fear of heights to the back of their minds as they prepared for a sponsored parachute jump from the climbing frame.

Pudsey Bear paid a visit to the Chadderton nursery to cheer and applaud the toddlers’ efforts.

Pupils at Hathershaw College of Technology and Sport went crackers for Children in Need as they tried to beat last year’s £1,200 total.

As well as a cracker-eating competition, students threw custard pies and enjoyed a staff talent show and disco. Little Rebecca Burke let the power go to her head when she won top prize in a raffle at Lyndhurst Primary.

The Year 6 pupil was made head teacher for the day with duties including taking assembly, general admin tasks, sending letters to parents and dealing with phone calls from governors and colleagues.

Rebecca’s fellow pupils designed an outfit for Pudsey and enjoyed a special Children in Need breakfast in their attempts to raise £500. Staff at Asda Chadderton dressed in their pyjamas, sang “Amarillo” and took part in a sponsored bike ride as well as inviting customers to take part in a karaoke.

And it was all ship-shape at Limeside Primary when pupils dressed as pirates for their lessons.

The annual event has raised £500 million since it started in 1980 through a combination of public fundraising and a BBC show filled with famous faces urging viewers to donate.

Money raised goes towards helping vulnerable and disadvantaged children in the UK and abroad. Tune in to BBC One from 7pm tonight.

Students at Oldham’s Sixth Form College raised £541 through various events.




Serious purpose behind the fun



Tonight’s Children in Need may be all about television fun and frolics, but the money raised has a serious purpose.



And donors are helping Oldham’s Family Crisis Group to reach out to vulnerable local teenagers at risk of forced marriage and domestic abuse.

The group has just been awarded £144,000 by the Children in Need trustees for two workers for the next three years.

One will reach out to vulnerable young women aged 13 to 18 who are being abused in the family home.

The other is a forced marriage worker who will deal with similar age teenagers.

Jenny Taylor, the project manager, said the group has had donations in the past from Children in Need, but this year the trustees were looking for more innovative projects.

She added: “Children in Need has been incredibly supportive of us in the past. This grant is wonderful and will allow us to have the first dedicated forced marriage worker in the country.

“We have identified this is a real need in Oldham. The money is for two new areas of work, and will allow us to reach out into victims of abuse in their own home.”

The group first applied in July and had to pass a series of hurdles, from interviews, external referees and scrutiny of finances and staffing, before the trustees were satisfied the new workers met the criteria and priorities of Children in Need.