“We believe that no child should have a Christmas without the joy of opening presents”

Donations are needed for an annual appeal which has been delivering Christmas joy to families in Wellingborough and Rushden for more than a decade.

My Christmas Wish is now in its 12th year of collecting and giving out presents to families in the area.

Last year, 147 local families were supported with a bag of presents delivered to a total of 314 children.

£10 Primark vouchers were also given out to 83 youngsters aged 11 and over coming from monetary donations for the annual appeal.

placeholder image — My Christmas Wish 2026 | UGC

A spokesman for My Christmas Wish said: “We believe that no child should have a Christmas without the joy of opening presents and no parent should be in the position of not being able to provide a present to their child, after all it is greater to give than to receive.

“Working through Rushden Independent Wesleyan Church in partnership with East Northants Child Contact Services and Simpson and Weekley Estate Agents, My Christmas Wish is a charitable programme dedicated to helping those in need at this special time of year.

“With the dedication of our volunteers and generosity of the local community we strive to ensure that every child’s Christmas is just that little bit better.”

Organisers are appealing for new and nearly new donations for children of all ages from newborn to 17-years-old to be dropped off at one of the donation points by December 10.

They are also asking charities, churches, schools or similar organisations to refer families to them that would benefit from the service.

Referral forms can be found online or people can email [email protected] - referrals should be made as soon as possible but ideally before December 10.

Mark Weekley, managing director of Simpson and Weekley in Wellingborough and Rushden, has been involved with the appeal for more than 12 years.

He told the Northants Telegraph: “This was never a Simpson and Weekley thing, we just help facilitate it and offer convenient drop off points, but staff from each office have become heavily involved and passionate about the event each year and seeing the generosity of people dropping gifts in fills us all with a bit of Christmas joy.”