Oxfordshire fundraising organisation Est. September 2007 Founded by Andrew Baker MBE BCAv
​Changing, Transforming and Saving Lives across Oxfordshire | Thames Valley Charity of the Year 2020
​Patrons: Dr Winston Ellis & MP David Johnston OBE | hello@play2give.org.uk
Play2Give
  • About Us
    • Our Charities >
      • Oxford Children's Hospital >
        • The Play2Give Room
      • Headway Oxfordshire
    • Patrons
    • Meet Our Team
    • Tribute to Angela Norris
  • Andrew Baker MBE BCAv
    • All Testimonials
    • Honours >
      • MBE
      • Prime Minister's Points of Light Award
      • Against Breast Cancer Lifetime Achievement Award
      • Pride of Britain 2019 Finalist
      • British Citizen Award
    • Press Articles
  • Awards and Endorsements
    • Testimonials
    • Charity of the Year 2020
    • OUH Supporter of the Year 2016
  • 15th Anniversary Events
    • P2G at Harwell Feast
    • Ladies Night
    • Headway Oxfordshire Summer Fun Day
    • The 15K Football Tournament
    • BIG15 Family FunFest on the Boundary
    • The BIG15K Skydive
  • News & Press
    • Blog
    • Archive >
      • Sainsbury's Didcot Charity of the Year
      • Cheque Presentation 2015
      • Cheque Presentation 2013
    • Press Cuttings
    • Press Coverage
    • Press Releases
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
  • Getting involved
    • Volunteer with us
    • Be a Superhero! >
      • Superheroes in action
    • Corporate Supporters
  • DONATE ONLINE
  • Get in touch
    • Newsletter subscriptions

Two Santas and an Elf spread Christmas cheer to young hospital patients

12/28/2015

0 Comments

 
PictureElf's the Way to do it: P2G's Andrew Baker, left, as Elf, with Lee Crook dressed as Santa on arrival at the children's hospital. Picture copyright Newsquest Oxfordshire
Christmas cheer was delivered in abundance last week to sick youngsters at Oxford Children's Hospital.

Thanks to our first ever Christmas Toy Appeal our very own Andrew Baker together with supporters and campaign collaborents, Lee Crookand Paul Tucker spread joy to two of the hospital wards dressed as Santa and their little helper brightening up the stay of youngsters unfortunate enough to be spending the yuletide period in hospital.

Andrew, dressed as Elf, whilst Lee and Paul played Santas's literally as the big bearded guy, toured Robin's  Ward (the children's specialist surgery ward) and Melanie's Ward (the adolescent unit) brimmed with sacks full of donated toys and gifts. 

The appeal was part of the December campaign called 'Sleigh2Give'. 

Thanks to so many kind-hearted supporters, some from as far afield as  Banbury. 3 very full and heavy sacks and more, made up donations totalling a few hundred gifts, which was very gratefully received by the children and their siblings who received the toys including games, puzzles and soft teddies, and we were pleased to see some of the patients on Robin's Ward had been discharged from the hospital when we visited. 

For Lee his visit to the children's hospital was even more admirable as Lee had completed an epic walk to the hospital at the John Radcliffe in 6 hours after setting off from Sainsbury's Didcot, where he works as nightshift worker, around 6.15am on the day, arriving at Chox at around 12.20pm after strolling through fields through the countryside to deliver the toys on time.

Lee who completed his sponsored walk whilst dressed as Santa in 29.35 miles has raised just under £400 - proceeds of which will be split between Play2Give for the Children's Hospital and the Sue Ryder Nettlebed Hospice - Sainsbury's Didcot's charity of the year.

For Andrew and Paul visiting the wards was an emotional rollercoaster, for Paul as his son Theo had been treated when he was younger on the Tom's Ward whilst for Andrew being on Robin's  Ward giving out the gifts brought back the memories of spending time on the Leopold Ward at the Radcliffe Infirmary (now Robin's Ward) when he was in childhood after spending time on the former ward for major brain surgery, when aged 12.   

Speaking to the Oxford Mail, Andrew said: "It was an amazing thing for Lee to do, this epic walk. It was a bit emotional walking around the children's hospital handing out presents. 
"It really brought it home for me as I had brain surgery when I was 12, and some of the children were recovering from major brain surgery.
"It was tear-jerking but also uplifting. It was really awesome to spread Christmas cheer."


For Lee, he was inspired to carry out his latest fundraising escapade in the form of this gruelling 6-hour walk after the store chose Play2Give as its charity of the year in July, 2014.  By July, 2015 the store in the Orchard Centre, Didcot, had raised its most record total for any supported local charity of the year by raising an overall £4,310 for Play2Give - which saw proceeds raised donated to the children's hospital, and the John Radcliffe Paediatric Eye Fund as well as brain injury charity, Headway Oxfordshire.  
​In November 2014, Lee forewent shaving for a month taking on 'Movember' which raised £116, in the February he walked 6 miles with a team of colleagues from the store from Didcot to Upton and back wearing his summer shirt and shorts on a bitterly cold Sunday, whilst over the course of 10 weeks in the summer he smashed over by taking on a 1000km sponsored walk, to obtaining a signed shirt from a squad of Reading FC Legends at a testimonial match played at Didcot Town FC's Loop Meadow ground, in May.  In total, Lee has now raised over £1,115 for Play2Give and cancer research causes. 
​
  • Oxford Mail: Christmas cheer delivered to Oxford Children's Hospital
  • ​Lee's Sponsored Didcot-Chox Walk Fundraising Page 

Picture
Picture
Picture
0 Comments

Making Headway's day with a £1,850 gift

12/11/2015

0 Comments

 
PictureAndrew Baker presents Jamie Miller, CEO, of Headway, left, with the proceeds of two years worth of fundraising.
Play2Give brought some Headway cheer this week when Andrew Baker presented a huge cheque making life just that bit better for brain injured survivors and their carers.

Andrew, who himself is supported by the Headway Oxfordshire charity, handed over a cheque totalising £1,850.10 to Jamie Miller, Chief Executive Officer of the charity during their  Christmas party on December 10th - held for service users, carers, staff and volunteers. 

The festivities, at Kennington Village Hall, saw an impressive performance from the staff team with their very own hilarious take on the '12 Days of Christmas' much to rapturous applaud and cheers from the audience as well as a raffle and other fun and games.   Andrew was delighted on behalf of the Play2Give team to present Jamie with the cheque raised from proceeds over the past two years of fundraising.

The group raised the money through a wide range of activities and events, from second hand book sale held by Sainsbury's Didcot in 2014 to some of the sponsorship Andrew himself raised early on in 2014 through having his head shaved, whilst in 2015 proceeds came through a fundraising party, a Play2Give team of ten in the Monster Race, a trio taking on the Oxford Fun Run in May with Andrew dressed as Batman's sidekick Robin in a wheelbarrow, £500 - part of the proceeds customers and staff at Sainsbury's in Didcot raised during their year of support, to a Superheroes Spinathon in September organsised by Didcot's Willowbrook Leisure Centre and part of the proceeds the Oxfordshire Sports Awards raised in November, 2014, through a raffle amongst guests. 

Jamie Miller, on receiving the generous amount, said: "Everyone at Headway Oxfordshire is so impressed with Andrew and his team's fund raising with Play2Give and we are hugely grateful for the support they are giving us. At a time of such financial pressure on charities, it is particularly important that we receive support from our community to enable us to confirm us providing the essential services that we do to those affected by ABI, like Andrew himself receives through us. Thank you Andrew and all the Play2Give team"

Andrew added: "I am delighted to present this huge cheque to a cause that means so much to me.  Headway Oxfordshire do amazing work to support so many living with brain injuries and such as the fact I receive that first-hand like so many others that this inspires me to lend my support to keep Headway's work going.  It's a cause that means a lot to all of us at Play2Give, as two of the team's dad has received support from Headway over a year until his funding was sadly stopped after he too had come through treatment years ago.  We look forward to raising more in 2016 through more exciting fundraising initiatives and events and hope to continue making headway for such a fantastic cause!" 

Play2Give has donated over £45,550 to local charities since it was formed in 2007, and Headway Oxfordshire is one of its key charities, after Andrew, the Play2Give chief, started to receive support from the charity in 2012. It is currently backing a petition set up by Andrew to save Headway Oxfordshire from Oxfordshire county council cuts next year. 

0 Comments

Save our Headway: Brain injured will battle against the cuts

12/10/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
Play2Give are delighted to be involved in supporting a campaign to save Headway Oxfordshire, set up by our very own Andrew Baker after the news emerged that 'catastrophic' cuts may force the brain trauma charity to close. 

Headway Oxfordshire is one of many Oxfordshire charities and social care services under threat in facing cuts of funding in proposals from Oxfordshire County Council as it bids to save £50m in its budget on top of £292m by 2018 as the council deals with a reduction in funding from central government. About 70% of the charity's funding currently comes from the county council, but its contract with the local authority is due to end next June - at the worse the charity could face staff redundancies or a reduction in the amount of services and ARC activities it currently offers.  

Andrew started the e-petition (Save Our Headway: Brain Injured Will Battle Against The Cuts') after learning through the charity's staff that Headway, based in Kennington, is faced with possible closure.   His campaign has already generated interest and coverage in the Oxfordshire Guardian, Oxford Mail and Herald newspapers, as well as an interview on BBC Radio Oxford. 

The recent £450,000 windfall from the Big Lottery Fund will be spent on Headway Oxfordshire's ABI (acute brain injury) satellite service, which has hubs in Didcot, Bicester, Witney and central Oxford. The satellite service allows community support workers to reach out to people with ABI, who struggle to get transport to its main base in Bagley Wood Road.  Despite the £450k it is not enough for Headway Oxfordshire to survive on alone - as it costs around £250,000-£300,000 per year to keep its services going! 

Andrew was born with a brain injury and spent his first days fighting for life in the John Radcliffe Hospital's special care baby unit.  His injury meant he could not talk until his six years old - and received years of speech and language therapy, as well as special needs schooling for developmental and learning difficulties.  At the age of 8, Andrew suffered a further head injury when he was knocked over in the playground at primary school in Oxford - resulting in major surgery at the Radcliffe Infirmary at the age of 12, after years of suffering headaches and a haematoma growth.   During the operation, a blood clot formed resulting in complications - but the miraculous surgeons made Andrew pull through.   Despite years of treatment for various medical problems and interventions throughout his childhood, the full extent of the brain injury wasn't identified until an MRI scan at the National Hospital for Neurology & Neurosurgery in London picked up the injury.  

In 2012 Andrew was referred to the Activity & Rehabilitation Centre (ARC) and attends the centre as part of his rehabilitation every Tuesday. 

He receives physiotherapy sessions, as well as taking part in tai chi and yoga as well as other forms of therapies, to rebuild his strength, improve balance, plus cognitive and social skills sessions, and help vocationally, as well as having his confidence built back up which lead to gaining a part-time job at Sainsbury's in Didcot.

Andrew said: "Headway has been a valuable and important part of my rehabilitation for my brain injury. If it wasn't for Headway Oxfordshire, I wouldn't have been able to make such big leaps and bounds in my recovery.  Thanks to them many aspects of my life have improved.
"The NHS is limited in its resources - particularly for after care support for those with conditions such as brain injuries. There isn't enough support. Headway is really specialised with a brilliant team who really do reach out and care and support not just for us as individuals but the carers too.  They are really welcoming and friendly!" 
"If the county council cuts the funding for Headway, it would be a huge, devastating loss. Headway is a lifeline for so many people under its care, and for many socialisation is a huge part of that. Without it many would feel more isolated and lonely - as carers receive support, such as respite with breaks and those without transport would not have access to help because the community outreach programme would not exist."


You can support Andrew and help save Headway Oxfordshire by clicking the link below.    Pictured below are recent articles as printed in the local press.


Sign the petition
​Oxford Mail: Brain-damaged man petitions to save the Headway branch that helped him

Picture
Oxford Mail - December 21 2015
Picture
The Didcot Herald - December 9 2015
0 Comments

Milton Park firm gives Christmas gift of £500

12/9/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
£500... That's the fantastic amount that one Oxfordshire company has donated to Play2Give moved after the father of a son whose best friends with our Andrew Baker was inspired to hear about our work.

Cannon Packing and Logistics Ltd based on Milton Park near Didcot have donated £500 as part of their Christmas charitable scheme donation.  This donation will help ensure that Play2Give can continue its work to raise funds for local charities as it will go towards helping towards fundraising costs and initiatives in 2016. 

Cannon Packing and Logistics perform contract packing for a diverse range of companies. Cannon has developed into a company that offers over and beyond the expected, as well as offering complimentary services for every kind of contract packing, including packaging engineering, labels and labelling systems, and have come a long way in the past 100 years. 

Thanks to Chris Norris for establishing this link and which in turn lead to this very generous donation from Cannon, after Chris filled them in on our organisation and the hard work of the team like Andrew whose best friends with Chris's son, Luke Norris.  

Huge thanks to all the directors and staff - and we wish them a very Merry Christmas for their wonderful generosity and philanthropy!  It will make a very real difference to our work, and adds to the £100 we won as prize money from our win at the Business & Community Awards in November when we scooped the 'Best Fundraising Award' honour.  

0 Comments

Oxfordshire Sports Awards supports Play2Give

12/1/2015

0 Comments

 
PictureThe glittering room that played host to the awards ceremony
For a second year running, we were delighted to be the chosen beneficiary of the Oxfordshire Sports Awards held on Friday evening (November 28th) in a prestigious awards dinner at the Kassam Stadium, home of Oxford United Football Club. 

The Awards - the tenth - celebrated and recognised athletes, coaches, volunteers, teams and unsung heroes for their shine in the spotlight they deserved - and they once again raised money for Play2Give on the night.

At the November 2014 awards, £551.10 was raised by generous guests through a raffle and table bucket collections, and it is hoped this year the guests will have been charitably generous yet again - with prizes this year in the raffle included a signed Cricket Bat and a membership. 

The Oxfordshire Sports Awards is an annual event organised and host by Oxfordshire Sport and Physical Activity (Oxspa), supported by official broadcast partner, BBC Oxford, and the Oxford Mail as official media partner. 2015 marked the 10th Awards Ceremony which has grown in popularity, size and stature since its creation (such that this year saw ticket sales sell out in record time and more tables and guests than ever before attended) and is seen as the flagship event of the year for Oxspa. 

The Awards incorporates nominations from across the county, raising the profile of sport and physical activity and creating a unified celebration of sporting excellence - this year a staggering amount of nominations was received - more than in any previous year - and particularly the most number of nominations seen in the Junior Sportsperson of the Year - making the task for the Judging panel to pick the winners incredibly difficult resulting in heated arguments and debates! All finalists were invited to celebrate their achievements - be it winners or runners up - at the swish evening which included a 3-course meal, pre awards drinks reception and Jerome Sale, BBC Oxford sports presenter hosting the entire evening! 

Our Andrew Baker and Craig Harris represented Play2Give and was awe-struck and sincerely delighted to be in amongst a packed room of hundreds of Oxfordshire's best sportsmen and women, young and old, teams, coaches, sporting schools, active workplaces and unsung heroes - such as Rupert Evans who won the Special Recogntion Award 2015 (Sir Roger Bannister took the gong in 2014).

A huge thank you from us to Zoe O'Neill at Oxspa for once organising such a wonderful, amazing and inspirational evening and for allowing us to attend but also receive the funds raised.  Funds raised for Play2Give will be shared between the Headway Oxfordshire brain injury charity based in Kennington, Oxford and to the Children's Hospital at the John Radcliffe Hospital. 

We hope long may our affiliation and partnership with Oxfordshire Sport & Physical Activity and in particular being the Oxfordshire Sports Awardschosen charity continue for many years to come - it is a fantastic occasion and a fantastic event to be involved in and one with great networking opportunities for us as a fundraising organisation - so a very big thank you again to Oxspa for their wonderful continued support and to everyone who gave so generously on the night - thank you! 

2015 SPORTS AWARDS WINNERS


  • Active Workplace Award - Sponsored by Ignite Sport: Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust

  • Sports Development Project of the Year - Sponsored by Gleeds: Youth Ambition

  • Sporting School(s) of the Year - Sponsored by Oxford City Council: Sunningwell Primary School: King Alfred's Academy Wantage (Secondary)

  • Young Volunteer of the Year - Sponsored by Oxford United Community Trust: Chloe Smart (Football & Ice Hockey)

  • Junior Sports Team of the Year - Sponsored by Rugby League Inspires: Didcot Girls School U15s Football Team

  • Disability Sports Award of the Year - Sponsored by GLL: Minster Lovell Inclusive Cricket Team

  • Junior Sportsperson of the Year - Sponsored by GLL: Jade O'Dowda (Athletics)

  • Special Recogntion Award: Rupert Evans (Cricket)

  • Club of the Year - Sponsored by Fusion Lifestyle: Banbury & District Canoe Club 

  • Coach of the Year - Sponsored by Legacy Leisure: Julie McDermaid (Netball)

  • Sports Team of the Year - Sponsored by Rhino Rugby: Oxford School of Gymnastics

  • Unsung Hero - Sponsored by Five on a Bike: Gary Dent (Ice Hockey)

  • Sportswoman of the Year - Sponsored by Brookes Sport: Demi Lambourne (Football)

  • Sportsman of the Year - Sponsored by Brookes Sport​: Jack Brooks (Cricket)

0 Comments

    Archives

    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    July 2014
    September 2013
    July 2013
    May 2013
    February 2013
    June 2012
    May 2012
    March 2012
    December 2009
    April 2008
    October 2007

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.