Help make Christmas
special for a child
in Croydon
Our Christmas Appeal, with Croydon Voluntary Action
why we need your help
Families are facing financial hardship, homelessness and emergency accommodation, bereavement and other challenges. We also support children living in care, young people in safe accommodation, refugee families, children with additional needs and those spending Christmas in hospital.
When household budgets are already stretched to cover essentials such as food, heating and housing, Christmas presents can simply be out of reach.
Together, we can make sure more children and young people across Croydon know that someone is thinking of them this Christmas.
Impact in 2025
3,772
Christmas presents distributed
£13,750
in gift vouchers provided
Supporting children and young people across Croydon through local schools, charities, community groups and projects.
What we need
Christmas gifts
We are collecting new, unwrapped gifts for children and young people of all ages.
Presents will be distributed through our own projects and a network of local charities, schools and community organisations, helping us reach children and young people across Croydon who may otherwise receive very little – or nothing – this Christmas.
Food
We are collecting food and providing food vouchers to families experiencing financial hardship, including families living in emergency accommodation.
Support will be distributed through local primary schools, foodbanks, community organisations and the Croydon Refugee Day Centre, including support for around 350 children living in emergency accommodation.
Winter essentials
We are also collecting practical essentials including hats, gloves and scarves, toiletries, baby essentials and other basic winter necessities.
Through CVA’s homelessness provision, we will also be collecting essential items for people experiencing homelessness, including food and warm blankets.
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Ways to help this Christmas
Shop our Amazon Wish List
Choose a gift from our Christmas Wish List and it will be delivered directly to us. We’ll make sure it reaches a child or young person who needs it.
Double your donation with the Big Give
From 1–8 December, donations to our Big Give Christmas campaign can be doubled at no extra cost to the donor.
Drop off a present
Buy a new, unwrapped present and bring it to one of our Christmas collection points across Croydon.
Make a financial donation
People can also donate online and we will use their contribution towards gift or food vouchers.
Every Gift Matters
Whether it’s a toy for a young child, a voucher for a teenager, food for a family in temporary accommodation or warm essentials for someone facing homelessness, every donation helps make Christmas a little brighter for someone in our community.
Thank you for helping Croydon care for its own this Christmas.