We need £45,000 to fund these projects:

Our mission statement

What are we dedicated to?

The defined objectives of our charity are:

  • To relieve in cases of need, hardship or distress persons who are resident, whether temporarily or not, in the County Borough of Hastings or the Rother District in the County of East Sussex
  • The provision for such persons of food and shelter or allowances or vouchers therefore.
  • The provision for such persons of clothing and heating or allowances or vouchers therefore.

How do we do it?

The Surviving Christmas committee meets monthly throughout the year in order to plan the Christmas project. In October an Appeal is launched to raise the necessary funding to run the project. Currently the Appeal Target is £48,000.

The 3 day Open Christmas event at the YMCA is free and open to everyone.

There is a clothing store offering new and clean second hand clothing.

A tea bar is open all day offering tea, coffee, soft drinks and fruit and snacks.

The volunteers provide a range of services including hairdressing and sometimes chiropody.

Showers and hair washing facilities are also available.

Each day we serve a cooked meal - complete with a pudding - for up to one hundred and fifty visitors.

In addition to the Open Christmas 3 day event we also run the voucher project and the hamper project.

Key Facts

  • Surviving Christmas was started in 1985.
  • It is a local charity supporting vulnerable people and families in the Hastings and Bexhill area at Christmas.
  • In addition to financial donations, non-perishable food, men’s clothing, toiletries and small gifts are needed at Christmas.
  • Volunteers are required at Christmas and to help fund-raise during the year.