Theatre / charity
Bristol Child Contact Centre to host theatre fundraiser
Bristol Child Contact Centre are holding a fundraising theatre production in collaboration with Beyond Closed Doors theatre company.
The centre provides an impartial space for children to meet up with their parents or relative after a relationship breakdown, something that can happen for many reasons, from divorce to drug abuse.
To raise funds for their vital work, a new production called Daisy Through the Looking Glass will take place at Bradbury Hall in Trinity Henleaze URC on September 14.
The performance will take place at Bradbury Hall in Henleaze
The charity is partly funded by the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service, but have this only covers £2750 of the £11000 needed annually to keep the service running.
“The rest of the funding comes from fundraising events like the production,” says Vanessa Kitchen, coordinator at Bristol Child Contact Centre. The charity are also organising a concert with Keynsham Brass Band on the October 19.
The centre has 23 volunteers with a capacity of 18 families and runs two sessions each day it opens, with seven to eight families attending per session.
However, they have recently received 17 new applications, most of which have had to be turned down due to a lack of funding.
Supporting centres such as this one is vital as the latest figures from the National Association of Child Contact Centres reveal: 100000 children each year loose contact with a parent and 7000 of these young people are from Bristol.
Designated family court judge for Bristol, Avon, North Somerset and Gloucestershire, Stephen Wildblood QC, will facilitate a post-performance discussion
Speaking about the production, Vanessa says: “Daisy Through the Looking Glass is based the true but hidden stories that play out in family court.”
Focusing on Daisy, her parents and their family conflict, the production will be followed by a post-performance discussion, during which the actors will stay in character.
Stephen Wildblood QC, designated family court judge for Bristol, Avon, North Somerset and Gloucestershire will facilitate this discussion as the writer of the production’s lay and as a trustee for Bristol Child Contact Centre.
Buy tickets for the show at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/beyond-closed-doors-theatre-group-daisy-through-the-looking-glass-tickets
Read more: The Situation for SEND Children in Bristol is Dire
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