Say hello to Alex Archer and Steve Minshull – two of 18 London Marathon participants running just over 26 miles to raise vital funds for Contact this year.
Alex from Clapham and Steve from Liverpool decided to run the London Marathon on 21 April for Contact because they’ve both seen the real difference Contact makes first-hand.
Alex says: “I’ve run a half marathon for Contact before, so the London Marathon seemed like the natural next step. It’s a cause very close to my heart as Contact has supported my family since my brother, who has additional needs, was young. We have been lucky to have so much support from Contact over the years and I firmly believe in the invaluable work Contact does to support and empower families like mine. I want to run this year’s marathon to give something back and raise money and awareness for this life-changing charity.”
Steve’s niece Hannah has a chromosome disorder called Jacobsen’s syndrome which means she has physical and learning disabilities as well as complex medical needs. Her condition was so rare that none of her doctors knew anything about it. Charity Contact was the only source of information they had on Hannah’s condition when she was first diagnosed. Steve says:
“I am delighted to be running the London Marathon for Contact, a charity close to my family’s hearts, thanks to the help they have given my sister and brother-in-law with their daughter Hannah. Hannah has just turned 18 and it feels like the perfect time for me to give something back and support this wonderful charity which supports families with disabled children. Many families with disabled children feel frustrated and ignored and can’t always access the services that they are entitled to. Contact provides an invaluable service supporting and signposting families in their quest for a better quality of life for their child. When we have a problem, Contact is the first place we go to for advice. Raising a disabled child whilst is extremely rewarding, can be stressful and hard at times. Knowing that Contact is there at the other end of the phone line or will respond quickly to messages makes things so much easier.”
Good luck Steve and Alex! We think you are both amazing and look forward to seeing you as run just over 26 miles of the Capital’s streets on Sunday, 21 April.
You can support Alex and/or Steve and give their fundraising target a boost by visiting their fundraising pages.
Michelle from Carterton has supported our campaign work in the past, and decided to take the next step and help Contact financially by playing the Contact lottery. And what a great decision it was! She’s landed £1,000 after just a few months!
“I have only been playing since October, so it’s come as a complete surprise to me!
As a parent of three children with autism spectrum disorder, I have followed Contact’s work for a while. I have signed their petitions and supported their campaigning work.
I decided to sign up for the Contact Lottery after reading about it on Facebook, but it’s the first time I’ve ever won anything this big!”
Sophie from Tonbridge also couldn’t believe her luck when she landed £1,000 this Easter after joining the lottery just a month before!
What an amazing Easter it’s been for both Michelle and Sophie.
Since we launched the Contact Lottery in 2020, we’ve had thousands of winners. Even better, the majority of our £1,000 and £10,000 winners have been parent carers themselves, who tell us they play to help support other families like theirs.
You could be next!
Playing the Contact Lottery is a fun and exciting way to help support our vital work, for as little as £1 a week you too could have the chance to win a prize of up to £10,000.
And the best part is that even if you don’t always win, playing our lottery means you’ll always be supporting other families.
On Sunday 21 April Bernadette in our business development team will be pounding the capital’s streets to raise vital funds for Contact at this year’s London Marathon.
Contact’s business development coordinator, Bernadette, is one of 18 people running for Contact this year. She says:
“When I heard there was an opportunity to run the London Marathon this year I was keen to find out more but wasn’t sure whether I’d actually be able to do it. But, having celebrated a significant milestone birthday this year, it seemed like the perfect time to challenge myself and to not only fulfil a personal accomplishment but to do something to support Contact too!
“The London Marathon aims to create an opportunity for participants “to have fun and provide some happiness and sense of achievement in a troubled world”. This really resonates with me. I enjoy running – but it’s fair to say I’m not a natural runner. I’ve run a couple of half marathons in the past, but the thought of doubling that distance is daunting. I want to show my children that if you set your mind to something, with determination and focus you can achieve it! I keep motivated with my training knowing that each step is helping to support families with disabled children. And, as an added bonus, fundraising has also provided an opportunity to raise awareness about Contact among my family and friends, some of whom have since benefitted from Contact’s services. So, I will embrace the experience, step out of my comfort zone, wear my Contact vest with pride and enjoy it as much as I can!”
Best of luck to all our runners this year!
Join us as we wish Bernadette and all our London Marathon runners the very best of luck!
We’re celebrating Easter with fantastic news – another parent carer has won big in the Contact Weekly Lottery!
Sophie from Tonbridge only signed up recently and has already matched five numbers to take home £1,000 in last Friday’s draw.
We caught up with Sophie, and she could not believe her luck:
“I’m over the moon to have won! Wow, I actually can’t believe it. I’ve only been playing for just over a month and had forgotten I had signed up, so it’s a huge surprise.
I found out about the Contact Lottery on Facebook as I’m a parent to an eight- year-old boy who has ADHD and autism, so I thought I’d try my luck. I’ve found the advice and information from Contact really helpful, so I wanted to support them back.
I can’t believe I won! Really unexpected, but very exciting – everyone who can should definitely have a go.”
You could be next! The Contact Weekly Lottery is a great, low-cost and easy way to support Contact’s vital support services for families with disabled children across the UK.
It all started when parent carer Sarah won a jaw-dropping £1,000 in our charity lottery last year and convinced her sister Kelly, who is also a parent carer, to join too.
And you won’t believe it, but Kelly has just won £1,000 too! Whoever said lightning can’t strike twice clearly hasn’t met these extraordinary sisters.
Two parent carers making a difference to families like theirs
Kelly, who has two disabled children, discovered our website while fighting to get her son into her chosen school. She found our online advice incredibly helpful, so when her sister shared the news of her £1,000 win, Kelly decided to give it a shot too.
“I joined the Contact lottery after my sister won £1,000.
I was so shocked to win! Thank you so much for all the hard work you do for families.”
Kelly, our recent £1,000 winner from Bristol
Kelly’s sister also knows first-hand the challenges of raising a disabled child. When she saw the opportunity to support Contact’s work for just £1 a week, she jumped at the chance to help other families like hers.
“I would highly recommend everyone to take part!”
Kelly’s sister Sarah, who also won £1,000 last year
We couldn’t be happier to witness these sisters turning their chances into huge wins.
For just £1 a week, you could be the next lucky winner!
Last year, we gave away more than £32,000 in our our charity lottery! And guess what? Nine parent carers each took home the £1,000 jackpot!
We now have an incredible community of nearly 3,000 lottery players who help fund our essential services for families with disabled children. And every single one of them has a chance of winning up to £10,000 every Friday. Talk about a win-win situation!
We’re fast approaching nearly 100 winners every single week – help us reach this milestone and add some excitement to your Fridays!
Last July, we had an incredible month with four parent carers each winning £1,000! Like Georgia and Stacey, who both discovered the Contact Weekly Lottery while browsing through our information and advice on our website.
Georgia, our £1,000 winner from Liverpool, shared her excitement:
“My little boy has Autism and is non-verbal, so I joined a few online classes through Contact to help with his speech and language. When I was looking for more information on Contact’s website, I stumbled upon the lottery.
I was totally blown away! Winning the money meant we could really enjoy our summer holiday as a family. We are going to use some of the funds to buy my little boy a much-needed adapted pram!”
Georgia, our £1,000 winner from Liverpool
And Stacey couldn’t believe it when she also won big just in time for the summer holidays:
“The school SENCO recommended Contact for information and advice. I came across the lottery on their website, thinking I have nothing to lose, but families have something to gain. I did it and here I am a winner of £1,000 just before summer holidays! It’s absolutely amazing!
I hope more families join, because it’s great to give something back while being in with a chance of winning.”
We have a lower fundraising target than most charities, and we’ll there to support you with excellent training and fundraising advice from the word go.
You can join thousands of runners, including elite athletes, racing the iconic route while huge crowds cheer you on around the course. The day’s atmosphere is truly like no other!
There is a desperate lack of services and support for the 620,000 parents in the UK who care for a disabled child.
As a result, families face a huge range of challenges and many feel isolated and alone. Coping with extra financial costs and practical challenges can put an enormous strain on daily life, with families more likely to face emotional issues, stress and anxiety.
In 2022/23 we supported 291,000 families with life-changing support.
We made Zoe and her family’s Christmas when we surprised them with the incredible news that they had won the top prize in our first-ever charity Christmas raffle!
Zoe was so excited when she found out she had won a £500 voucher that she rushed to our Fledglings shop to see what she could spend it on. Spoilt for choice, Zoe eventually selected products to help with her daughter’s feeding, sensory and communication skills, plus a few extra items for her daughter’s school.
She told us:
“I’m still in shock! I purchased raffle tickets from a few charities not expecting to win anything – let alone first prize! What an amazing call to get on a Monday morning and I’ll admit, I did a little dance!
My daughter has been through so much in her short life, always facing everything with tenacity, strength, and a good dose of cheekiness. She spreads joy with her beautiful smile and personality, so it’s incredible to be able to support her and help her shine like the superstar she is.
Thank you so much! This will make a huge difference for my daughter and her future.”
Zoe and her family.
A huge thank-you to everyone who played our charity raffle and donated money to help fund Contact’s vital support services for families with disabled children!
Join our next raffle
If you would like to join in on the fun next time, simply sign up to our weekly newsletter for parents and carers and we’ll let you know when tickets go on sale.
But there’s no need to wait: you can also try your luck every week by playing the Contact Weekly Lottery.
For just £1 a week, you’ll have a chance of winning up to £10,000 every Friday. Hundreds of parent carers have bagged top prizes so far – like our recent winner, parent carer Samantha, who took home £1,000 just before Christmas.
There is a desperate lack of services and support for the 1.6 million disabled children in the UK and their families.
As living costs continue to skyrocket, families tell us they are struggling to keep afloat and thousands are unable to afford the life-saving electrical equipment their child relies on.
Contact has been providing a lifeline for these families for over 40 years, but as a charity, we rely on our generous funders, donors and everyone who supports our work by playing the Contact Weekly Lottery.
We need help now more than ever
We’re seeing unprecedented demand for our support services from families who don’t know where to turn.
A £5 donation each month this winter from you could mean struggling mums and dads can attend one of our parent workshops, speak to our parent advisers and get support from us when their child is in hospital.
Or you could be helping an eligible family get an average of £5,400 a year in the benefits they are entitled to when they call our Family Finance helpline.
By making a donation today you’ll be helping ensure we’re able to keep offering workshops and events that bring families together to support each other and feel less alone.
We’re thrilled to announce our first charity raffle to raise funds for Contact’s support services.
You can join the fun for just £1 a ticket, giving you a chance to win a £500, £100 or £25 vouchers forour Fledglings shop.
The vouchers can be spent on ANYTHING in our shop – from cosy adaptive sleepwear, sensory toys and dens, to wheelchair accessories and continence swimwear.
What’s more, joining costs as little as £1 a week and is capped at £3 a week. We want to give everyone the opportunity to donate to our charitable work without breaking the bank – while hopefully getting lucky too!
Congratulations to our recent parent carer winner
We were delighted to deliver the news to Andrew that he had landed a whopping £1,000 last month. He told us:
“I started playing the Contact Lottery as I know first-hand the valuable support Contact provides.
“It’s a very modest way of giving something back to a cause that I consider worthwhile. To actually win £1,000 is incredible. It really is a win-win!”
£1,000 winner, Andrew from Devices
Taking part couldn’t be simpler
For every £1 entry, we’ll give you a unique six-digit number. Match three numbers or more, and you’ll win a cash prize between £5 and £1,000.
On Friday 14 July, the Contact Weekly Lottery had two more £1,000 winners – Stacey from Kettering and Cheryl from North Shields and they are both parent carers!
Stacey and Cheryl matched five numbers and won big – just in time for the school holidays.
“My son has disabilities which are hard to manage in many social settings, and there are no SEND holiday clubs near me, so this money will pay for activities that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do.”
Cheryl from North Shields
We spoke to Cheryl to tell her the good news who said: “Thank you so very much for this amazing news! Hard to believe I have won £1000…never have I won anything like this! Amazing considering I’ve only been playing for just over one year!! Fantastic windfall, especially with the school holidays approaching! This money will make some happy summer memories for my two children. My son has disabilities which are hard to manage in many social settings. There are no SEND holiday clubs near me, so this money will pay for activities that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do. Contact lottery is so worthwhile, knowing I am also contributing to such a cause close to us all in our community. Genuinely over the moon.”
And when we told Stacey she was the winner of £1,000 she said:
“The school SENCO recommended looking to Contact for advice and information, and I did. I came across the Contact Lottery thinking I have nothing to lose but families have something to gain. I did it – and here I am a winner of £1,000 just before summer holidays! It’s absolutely amazing!
I hope more families join because it’s great giving something back and be in with a chance of winning.”
Stacey from Kettering
Last chance to get a free entry into our upcoming draw!
If you haven’t played our lottery yet, you’re in luck because we’re celebrating its third birthday in July by giving all new players one free entry!
It’s your chance to be the next player to win the jackpot while funding our vital services to help other families like yours.
Simply sign up by the 31 July, and we’ll add a free entry to your first draw once your initial direct debit payment has been processed.
The Contact Weekly Lottery has over 200 winners every month and we’ve just had four parent carers take home £1,000 each in less than a month. If you join us, you could be next!
Play Contact’s Weekly Lottery for as little as £1 a week and have a chance to win up to £10,000, all while helping us make a difference to thousands of families with disabled children in the UK.
Congratulations to Stacey and Cheryl and good luck to all our wonderful players in the next draw!
Promotion T&Cs: From 5 -31 July 2023, new supporters who sign up for the Contact Weekly Lottery will receive one complimentary entry. To be eligible, you must sign up for the lottery and be included in the draw. Your first draw will take place once your direct debit has been set up and the first payment has been made. Each supporter is entitled to a maximum of one free entry. Please note that no lottery numbers will be provided for the complimentary entry.
We are absolutely thrilled to announce that our DinoDay Stomp & Roar Challenge has raised an incredible total of £15,340!
A dinosaur-sized thank you to the 355 families who took on our very first challenge event to raise money to help fund our vital support services.
We were blown away by the creative ideas for the challenges, all centred around the number 19. From trying 19 new foods to whizzing down 19 zip lines, and someone even taught their baby brother to walk for 19 days.
It was heart-warming to see children of all ages and abilities proudly wearing their DinoDay t-shirts to support Contact. Thank you to each and every little, medium and large dinosaur for Stomping and Roaring for us on DinoDay – your enthusiasm made this a truly memorable event.
A stegosaurus-ly HUGE thank you to every one of you who took part in our DinoDay challenge this June and for making it such a success! Every penny you raised will make a real difference to the families we support.
Mark Davies – Director of Income Generation
Thank you to all the roar-some schools and nurseries
We were delighted to see schools and nurseries nationwide come together in a spectacular display of dino-spirit, all in support of Contact. A special mention goes to Toddler’s Den Nursery for raising an impressive £461! They led their little ones on a 19-minute stomping adventure through the local area, all dressed as dinosaurs and donning the colour green.
The difference the money will make
The money you helped raise this DinoDay will help us continue running our vital services, which include:
If you fancy having fun with your family while raising money to support Contact, we would love to have you onboard #TeamDinoDay!
There’s no fundraising target, all you need to do is take on a challenge with the number 19 in the theme. We’ll also send your child a free t-shirt and activity tracker.
We’ll be inviting participants to sign up in early 2024, so watch this space!
A huge congratulation to Georgia from Liverpool and Tessa from Crawley, our latest £1,000 Contact Weekly Lottery winners!
Georgia and Tessa matched five numbers to take the jackpot. They join our previous nine £1,000 winners and the over 3,000 others we’ve had since we began our lottery launched three years ago.
We caught up with Georgia as she was off on a family break:
“I first heard about Contact through a parents and carers forum page that I am in on Facebook. My little boy has Autism and is non-verbal. I joined a few online classes through Contact to support with speech and language therapy, and it was when looking on the Contact website for more information that I found the lottery.
“I was totally blown away! Winning the money meant we could really enjoy our summer holiday as a family. We are going to use some of the funds to buy my little boy a much-needed adapted pram!”
Tessa, who is also a parent carer, said:
“I joined because the worthwhile cause is something really close to my heart. When we got the call to say we had won £1000, it was completely unexpected. I was totally blown away! Winning the money meant we could really enjoy our summer holiday as a family.
“I’m so happy to have won £1,000 on the Contact Lottery. It’s for such a good cause. And with two disabled children myself, the money will come in really handy. Thank you so much, and good luck to everyone playing!”
Promotion T&Cs: From 5 -31 July 2023, new supporters who sign up for the Contact Weekly Lottery will receive one complimentary entry. To be eligible, you must sign up for the lottery and be included in the draw. Your first draw will take place once your direct debit has been set up and the first payment has been made. Each supporter is entitled to a maximum of one free entry. Please note that no lottery numbers will be provided for the complimentary entry.
This month marks three years since we launched the Contact Weekly Lottery, our popular game giving you the chance to win cash prizes every week – all while making a regular contribution to our vital work.
Almost 3,000 winners in three years!
Since then, we’ve had:
One £10,000 prize winner!
TEN £1,000 prize winners!
Almost 3,000 winners of £5 and £25 prizes!
Most of our winners have been parent carers themselves, who play to support other families like theirs.
And in that time, ALL our lottery players have provided a steady source of funding for our vital services, which include:
As a charity, every penny spent on our lottery goes back into supporting thousands of families with disabled children. Having a regular source of income is so important to us – so thank you to all our players!
Get a free entry into our upcoming draw!
We want to celebrate with you and give you a chance to win big, so we’re giving you one FREE entry into our lottery.
It’s your chance to be the next player to win the jackpot, while funding our vital services to help other families like yours.
Simply sign up by the 31 July and we’ll add a FREE entry to your first draw once your first direct debit payment has been made – good luck!
Promotion T&Cs: From 5 -31 July 2023, new supporters who sign up for the Contact Weekly Lottery will receive one complimentary entry. To be eligible, you must sign up for the lottery and be included in the draw. Your first draw will take place once your direct debit has been set up and the first payment has been made. Each supporter is entitled to a maximum of one free entry. Please note that no lottery numbers will be provided for the complimentary entry.
About the Contact Weekly Lottery
Playing our lottery costs as little as £1 a week!
For every £1 entry, we’ll allocate you a unique 6-digit number. Match three or more numbers and win one of our great cash prizes between £5 and £1,000. If you match all six numbers, you’ll win an incredible £10,000!
You can play £1, £2 or £3 per week for more chances of winning.
Today is DinoDay, our annual event to raise vital funds to help us be there for families with disabled children. Hundreds of incredible families across the UK have been taking on the Stomp & Roar DinoDay Challenge this June to raise money and have some dino-themed fun.
Your family can join the fun too with our collection of dino-themed activities below.
The challenge has raised over £12,000 so far, which is fantastic! Well done to everyone involved and thank you to all our fundraisers. Like Tracey and her son Vinnie, who have helped make our first DinoDay challenge a roaring success.
What an amazing month of fundraising we have had. Thank you so much for the t-shirt and the opportunity to raise money for Contact.
We hosted a non-school uniform day, organised a dino-fun club for after school. For the challenge we walked and collected 19 sticks, leaves and flowers to make pictures with. It’s been amazing.
DinoDay fundraiser – Tracey
Have fun this DinoDay with our roar-some activities
This year, we’ve created lots of dino-themed activities so everyone can take part in DinoDay.
Today is all about raising awareness of Cameron Mathieson and his family’s successful campaign to stop Disability Living Allowance (DLA) payments from being taken away from children who spent over 12 weeks in hospital.
We supported Cameron and his family in challenging this unfair rule. As a result, no other family with a child who spends long periods in hospital has been denied this essential financial support.
The money raised from DinoDay will help us continue to tackle the discrimination that families with disabled children face.
Cameron had both Cystic Fibrosis and Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy and sadly passed away when he was five years old after spending over two years in hospital.
He loved dinosaurs – or as he called them, Dowsers – and his favourite Dowser was a green triceratops called Troy.
DinoDay is fast approaching on 19 June and hundreds of you have been doing your Facebook Challenges, having loads of fun and raising vital funds to help us be there for even more families with disabled children.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the creative ideas for the Facebook Challenges you’ve set up in order to raise money for us – all the while incorporating the number 19. And we’re also delighted that some of you have roared about DinoDay to get your child’s school involved too by holding a non uniform day for us and sharing our schools’ pack.
Some of our favourites GENIUS Facebook Challenge ideas you’ve had include:
Painting 19 rocks with dinosaurs and leaving them around town – complete with Contact’s website on the back!
19 new play activities – including excavating the back garden while wearing an exclusive DinoDay t-shirt!
Finding 19 number 19s on 19 walks!
We just know that together you are going to help us smash our £20,000 target!
It’s not too late to sign up and join in the fun. Please note, your free t-shirt and DinoDay tracker may take a week to arrive.
We’re inviting you and your family to join us at a festival of disability inclusion at Windsor Great Park on 2 July.
Contact is a proud sponsor of Parallel Windsor, a ground-breaking fundraising event offering a wide range of fully inclusive challenge activities – ranging from 100m to 10k and including a unique SuperSensory1k.
Take on a challenge event and you’ll also gain access to the Festival of Inclusivity, where you can enjoy delicious food, live music, arts and crafts, storytelling and sports, as well as information about skills and careers.
To secure a place, you or a family member will need to sign up for one of the challenges and fundraise £75 for Contact. Make it a special day out you won’t forget by inviting your friends and family to join the festivities for £5 per person.
Watch these incredible highlights from the previous Parallel Games in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The organisers are making it bigger and better this year in the stunning grounds of Great Windsor Park.
How to secure your place
To join us, you’ll need to fundraise £75 for Contact and take on one of the challenge events. You’ll also need to cover the cost of a £10 admin fee.
You can invite your friends and family to cheer you on and join the festivities for just £5 per person.
It’s going to be an incredible day out for the whole family!
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