A ‘giving tree’ featuring wish lists from children who will go without this Christmas has been put up in a shopping centre, inspiring people to dig deep.
The tree at Parkhead Forge shopping centre in Glasgow aims to spread a little festive cheer to children who find the period difficult for a variety of reasons.
The centre, which partnered with children’s charity ‘With Kids’ for the scheme, is urging shoppers to buy an extra gift to donate to a child in need.
“The situations are different for many families the charity supports,” said Jade Wilkie, marketing manager for the centre told HuffPost UK.
“Some children are in care of family members who cannot provide and other families are in difficult circumstances (who may have lost jobs, for example).
“Many children are also in an environment where their parents have drug-related issues and won’t or can’t provide.”
The child-centred charity With Kids recognises that all families – regardless of background – can have difficulties, but may not know how to access the right support. Their services aim to provide children and their parents/carers with the tools to manage their lives effectively.
Customers are asked to pick a gift tag from the tree and purchase a present for the child detailed on the label.
Unwrapped gifts are then handed to customer services in the centre and passed on to the team organising the wrapping.
“We are hoping the ‘giving tree’ will be a huge success and will allow shoppers to gift one extra present to less fortunate local children,” said Wilkie.
Wilkie added: “Supporting this charity each year means a lot to the centre and after receiving our initial list of children’s wishes, this has grown weekly due to the exposure the charity has received.”
The initiative gained popularity on Twitter after a local shopper shared photos of some of the wish lists seen on the tree.
The final date for handing in gifts is Monday 11 December, with the donations soon making their way to children’s stockings across the area.
This is the centre’s third year running the campaign.
Twitter users thought the scheme was a brilliant idea – one that should be done across the UK.