Other locations
Choose your festive challenge now!
Our ZCT elves have been super busy sourcing a sack load of projects for you and your teams to pick from! Whether sprinkling trees with tinsel, wrapping presents with ribbon, or spreading joy with a jolly party - we have lots of ways you can make it a tree-mendous Christmas in your community!
With a mixture of virtual and face-to-face projects, and up to £500 provided per challenge, it couldn't be easier!
To book, please call the numbers below...
Croydon, Manchester and Newcastle: Ben Wainman 07896 508303
Bristol: Mark Flay 07812 265497
You'll find everything else you need in our Challenge Team Leader Toolkit! >
Bristol
BRIS1F Deliver The Festive Goodies
The Challenge
Bristol Dementia Action Alliance are hosting a festive meal on Friday 1 December and would love some of our now legendary goody bags to hand out to the 50-60 attendees. These could include some treats and a small craft based activity. If your team is available, you could attend on the day to enjoy the festive fun and hand out the goody bags to the grateful recipients.
Bristol Dementia Action Alliance
BDAA's aim is to make Bristol a dementia aware city by engaging with all organisations in our communities and actively supporting people living with dementia and their loved ones to remain active participants within their community. BDAA raises awareness, encourages positive attitudes, broadens public understanding and dispels myths and negative perceptions surrounding dementia.
Team size = Small (<6)
BRIS2F Festive Pamper Hampers!
The Challenge
The charity would love you to provide 20-25 Christmas shoe boxes / pamper hampers for distribution (early December) to their clients to add some sparkle to their Christmas. These hampers, although small, will be a perfect treat to people that need a festive boost. The charity will guide you as to what types of items you might include.
The Nelson Trust
The Nelson Trust helps women thrive in their community and supports individuals recovering from addiction.
Team size = Medium (6-10)
Croydon
CROY1F Fill the Hampers
The Challenge
Frank and his team would love a team to head down to the centre to help decorate and make it all Christmassy for their lovely users. There's no need to buy decorations, as they have them from previous Challenges. However, they would really like you to create some hampers for their users, containing Christmas treats. When delivering the hampers, there will be an opportunity to meet with the users and have a chat over a cup of tea, coffee and maybe a mince pie.
South Croydon Day Centre for the Retired
The South Croydon Day Centre has been operating for over 40 years, with the help of volunteers and the generous support of companies and organisations. They organise activites, outings and entertainment and provide a hot meal, if required. It is a friendly and homely environment for the elderly to make friends and meet in a safe space, alleviating loneliness and isolation.
Team size = Medium (6-10)
CROY2F Virtual Festive Fun
The Challenge
The Ovacome festive party is an annual virtual event held for some of their members to meet each other and the staff. They would like your team's help with the following:
- Finding a comedian that could run a 15-20 minute set
- Finding someone from a choir teaching background to lead the party in singing festive songs/carols
- Helping write the quiz
- Securing some raffle prizes, or prizes for the best dressed and best virtual background. It would be great if you could also judge the best costume and background too! The event will take place on Thursday 7 December, 6:30-8pm.
Ovacome
Ovacome is a UK ovarian cancer support charity that has been providing free information and support to anyone affected by ovarian cancer since 1996. This includes people diagnosed with the disease, or those at risk, as well as family members, friends and healthcare professionals.
Team size = Small (<6)
CROY3F Windrush Christmas
The Challenge
The challenge is to make this Christmas extra special for the CACFO elders. There is currently a nationwide celebration called Windrush 75. This marks the number of years since the Empire Windrush, the ship that has come to symbolise the arrival of this now elderly generation, docked at Tilbury. You and your colleagues will be required to spend a morning or afternoon at the Day Centre putting up a Christmas tree and decorations. They would like you to purchase some special decorations to ensure there is a Windrush 75 Christmas theme. You can check out this website for some appropriate decorations that will be sure to put a smile on the elders' faces - https://www.marchmuses.co.uk.
Croydon African Caribbean Family Organisation (CACFO)
CACFO runs an Adult Day Centre to help tackle social isolation in Croydon. It is open to elders from all communities, though the ethnic mix is mostly from the Windrush generation, reflective of the local population. Their average age is 85 years old. All too frequently they suffer from varying degrees of dementia, loneliness and other vulnerabilities.
Team size = Medium (6-10)
CROY4F A Whole Lot of Festive Fun
The Challenge
A small team is needed to help with a Christmas event at Ingram Court, a service for young people between the age of 16-23. On either Tuesday 5 or Tuesday 12 December, they would like you to visit for a whole day of Christmas fun. Prior to the day arranged, you will need to purchase a Christmas tree and some decorations. You will work in small teams. Some of you will put up the tree and decorate the space, whilst the others will help with the Christmas card making station. The rest will help with the Christmas baking! You will be supported by members of the Evolve team and their clients. If you have any remaining budget, an online order purchasing items for their Christmas day dinner would be a massive extra!
Evolve Housing + Support
Evolve Housing + Support is a homelessness and community support charity. They support young people, young parents and adults impacted by homelessness in the London Boroughs of Croydon, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Merton, and Sutton.
Team size = Small (<6)
Manchester
MANC1F Seasonal Spirit
The Challenge
As with previous years, Better Things would love a team to help with the festive party. The event will be for their users who are adults with learning disabilities, and/or autism. There will be a festive buffet lunch, a disco with dancing and fancy dress for the guests to get them in the seasonal spirit. It really is a highlight for them and a great opportunity for their users to meet new people, make new friends and spread their Christmas spirit even further.
Better Things
Better Things is a charity working with people with learning disabilities and autism. It supports people with employment options, promoting social inclusion and encouraging good health and wellbeing.
Team size = Small (<6)
MANC2F Tinsel Toys
The Challenge
Emmeline's Pantry would love a small team to get together and purchase some toys for their Christmas Toy giveaway. You will use the £500 budget to purchase items like Lego sets, board games, dolls, like Barbie etc. The only things they cannot accept are second hand toys or toys of a violent nature, e.g. guns or knives. You will work with Emmeline's to find a convenient date to drop off the toys. If you are free, they said they might have some jobs for you to help with if you can spare a couple of hours volunteering for them!
Emmeline's pantry
Emmeline's Pantry is a food bank supporting vulnerable women, and their families, who are living in poverty. Through their referrals process, they provide fresh and halal food, long-life food, toiletries, baby items, sanitary products and clothes. The food pantry exists for women who do have access money, but struggle to get by week to week. For these clients, they offer the same produce as the foodbank however women are asked to give a donation for their items.
Team size = Small (<6)
Newcastle
NEWC1F Christmas Tea Dance
The Challenge
Silverline Memories are looking for a team to help with organising their Christmas Tea Dance. This will be their first tea dance since the pandemic. The event is planned for 14 December, from 1-3pm. The venue is St Aidan's Community Centre, Brunton Park. Your job is to be a helping hand on the day. You and your team will be engaging with service users - such as serving tea and coffee, juice and giving out small gifts. You will need to set up the room (12-1pm) and help to clear down (3-4pm). They would also like you to use some of your budget to buy some Christmas cakes slabs, non-alcoholic champagne and some disposable drinkware.
Silverline Memories
Silverline Memories is a dementia charity based in Kenton, Newcastle upon Tyne. They support over 200 people living with, or caring for someone living with dementia.
Team size = Small (<6)
NEWC2F Chocolate Treats
The Challenge
Each year in the run up to Christmas, The People's Kitchen give a small gift to their "friends" when they come into The Alison Centre for their meal. The £500 budget would enable you to purchase a chocolate advent calendar which will be gifted to each of the friends on the 1 December. They do not have the funds to do anything special, so little gestures like this make their friends' Christmas a little bit brighter.
The People's Kitchen
The People's Kitchen support rough sleepers or recently placed in housing with no belongings. Many of them don't have access to nutritious food or have no support system around them. They make life on the streets a little easier by sharing hot meals and packages of clothing, toiletries, food, mobile phones and sleeping bags. They work with services to enable people to move off the streets and then they provide food, furniture and bedding to their "friends" when they move into their first home. They also offer friendship and professional services to improve mental wellbeing.
Team size = Small (<6)