Skip to main content

Published on Friday 17 December 2021

Bournemouth Pier and a 60ft Christmas tree will join landmarks across the country by glowing green in support of the NSPCC.

Supported by BCP Council, on 21 December Bournemouth’s Christmas Tree Wonderland 60-foot feature tree will light up green with white NSPCC lettering at 25 minutes past the hour between 4.25pm and 9.25pm, while Bournemouth Pier will go green from 4pm on the same day until 9am the following morning.

Light ups across the country include London’s iconic Battersea Power station, Liverpool’s Martin Luther King building and the Library of Birmingham.

In addition to buildings lighting up in support of the NSPCC, people will be taking to the streets on this date – the longest night of the year - to walk in a UK-wide fundraising event called Walk for Children, which recognises the work done by Childline counsellors who are there for children.

Since its inception last year, almost 1,200 people up and down the country have taken part in the event, raising over £160,000 for the NSPCC.

Henry Street, NSPCC Supporter Fundraising Manager for the South West, said: "It will be incredible to see these landmarks lighting up green in support of the NSPCC and Childline.

"Over the last 18 months Childline has proved to be a lifeline for children and young people and because of this I would really love to see people pick up their walking boots and Walk for Children this Christmas."

Earlier this month Childline figures revealed that last December was the loneliest month on record for the service, with over 600 youngsters contacting the helpline.

In 2020/2021, Childline delivered over 200,000 counselling sessions to children and young people, and the NSPCC estimates that 2,100 of these were to children living in Dorset.

Councillor Drew Mellor, Leader of BCP Council, said: "We are glad to be supporting the NSPCC’s Walk for Children challenge by turning a couple of our landmarks green, and I encourage everyone to sign up online and help raise some much-needed funds for this good cause.

"The tragic death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes sadly highlights the fact that these funds are desperately needed to help vulnerable children across the UK who are facing child abuse and neglect."

The Childline service is here for children every day, including Christmas Day.

Children can contact Childline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. When a child needs help, Childline can be a lifeline.

When a child feels like they have nowhere else to turn to, it’s vital that the NSPCC is here, ready to listen and support children across the UK.

To find out more about the NSPCC, please visit:www.nspcc.org.uk

Have you encountered a problem with this page?