We are delighted to share our four new charity partners for both the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons.
The four local charities were selected after being nominated and then voted for by four key areas of the club – supporters, Junior Cherries, AFC Business and club staff.
Our new charity partners will receive support from the Cherries over the coming two seasons through player appearances, signed merchandise and club media support.
The four partners are now:
Supporters – Home-Start Wessex
The mission at Home-Start Wessex is to give children the best possible start in life by supporting local parents going through a challenging life situation. They provide specially-trained volunteers to work with the family at this vital time to ensure the child has a positive start in life and goes on to flourish.
Parents are often dealing with more than one issue from; poor mental health, disability, domestic abuse, bereavement and isolation, which impacts the child's young years causing ongoing problems. The earliest years make a big difference and they help to make sure those years count, so no child's future is limited.
More information: homestartwessex.org.uk
Junior Cherries – Helpful Hounds
Helpful hounds is a mental health charity that helps change lives using the training of assistance dog for those dealing with autism, Down's syndrome, acute anxiety, PTSD or other mental impairments as well as physical disablement.
They provide support for:
- Young people, families and adults
- Schools and colleges dealing with special needs students
- Alternative Provision Education at the request of local authorities/education authorities
More information: helpfulhounds.org.uk
AFC Business – Stormbreak
Stormbreak supports children's mental and physical health and emotional wellbeing. They create happier, healthier humans through inspiring and embedding mentally healthy movement for every child.
They deliver universal, preventative and specialist, targeted early intervention programmes for children aged 4-11 in education, health and social care. Stormbreak's programmes support trusted adults to help children they live with, work with, care for, and support, learn to recognise, respond and regulate their feelings, emotions and behaviours to help them thrive and flourish as they grow.
When the storm rages, they help children create light, calm and change through purposeful, positive movement.
More information: stormbreak.org.uk
Club – Mosaic
Mosaic is a Dorset-wide charity supporting bereaved children and young people from four up to 18 and their families. The charity was founded in 2007 and now works with over 400 children each year.
Mosaic provides pre and post-bereavement therapy and early-bereavement support for the family immediately after a death. Mosaic work with all demographic families, however, approximately 95% of their cases are living in poverty.
The charity works with children and young people to help them gain mental and emotional wellbeing at an exceedingly challenging time in their lives.
More information: mosaicfamilysupport.org
