Children in Need

If you thought Children in Need ended when the baths of beans were cleaned out and the sponsored silences were punctuated by celebratory screams, you were wrong.

All over Wearside, organisations are reaping the benefits of the generous donations made during Children in Need and making real changes to the communities they support.

Last year more than £300,000 worth of your donations were given out in our area to help make a difference to young people's lives.

A great feeling of self worth

The A690 Youth Initiative's motto "shy bairns get nowt" came in handy when helping them to secure a grant. The Sunderland charity helps teenagers on Wearside to make safer choices.

Young people with their work

Lee Ferry, project manager, said: "To a small charity like ourselves, the grant has boosted not only our funds but also given us a great feeling of self worth because Children in Need believe in the project and has helped us have a positive impact on young people's lives."

Indeed, the grant has funded two street-based detached youth workers who have been working closely with youths from a particular estate who were regularly found to be under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

With the workers' help, the young people have helped to clean cycle paths and paint fences, demonstrating to the community that they are eager to make a positive contribution to their environment.

Helping young people fulfil their potential

Further down the road, several Seaham-based organisations have been given a helping hand by Children in Need.

Seaham Youth Initiative received the biggest single grant in the country to help employ two street-based youth workers to help engage young people in positive activities.

Seaham SANDS and Dawdon Youth and Community Centre also received grants to help them to continue to provide social and educational support and activities for young people.

Every detail matters

Another organisation which was helped by Children in Need is DISC (Developing Initiatives, Supporting Communities), which aims to alleviate deprivation and help young people to fulfil their potential, regardless of their circumstances.

With help from Children in Need, DISC will be able to employ a project worker to train young people as peer educators who pass on safety messages about weapon crime to other young people and their communities.

Andrea Dixon from the project said: "We discovered that many of our service users had been assaulted or threatened with weapons and also carried their own weapons and wanted DISC to develop a project to enable them to do something constructive about it. Thanks to Children in Need that's just what we're doing."

Nutrtitional value

Esh Winning Primary School was absolutely thrilled when it received its grant to help develop their existing breakfast club, which is popular not only with pupils but also with their mums, dads and grandparents who can all get a nutritious start to the day and a chance to interact with each other through different activities.

Some of the school's kitchen equipment was in need of replacement, so the grant will help to purchase much needed items to help the breakfast club continue.

Young people hard at work

The Auckland Youth and Community Centre's grant has greatly helped to finance its after-school youth and holiday clubs for young people.

Paul Belton, play development co-ordinator for the centre said: "This project has become an essential part of the support infrastructure for this deprived area, and this grant will allow this very important work, albeit on a seasonal basis, to continue until the end of September 2011."

Charities and community groups all over Wearside rely on donations like those from Children in Need to enable them to continue to provide great support to young people in the region.