2023 Christmas cards are true community effort

Children at Milnrow Parish Primary with their Christmas cards

For the last three years, the Co-op in Milnrow has supported local primary school children to design, write and deliver thousands of Christmas cards to care home residents.

They’ve switched it around this Christmas, with comfort day visitors at the Willows care home, decorating and writing Christmas cards to children at Milnrow Parish Primary.

The Christmas cards have been kindly designed by Belfield Art Group (BAG) who have previously received funding from the Co-op.

The children at Milnrow Parish were so pleased to hear that they would be receiving Christmas cards, they immediately got busy creating and writing their own cards for comfort day visitors at the Willows.

In the run-up to Christmas Jenny Allen, the Co-op Member Pioneer for Milnrow delivered over 60 Christmas cards with a donation of mince pies from the Co-op.

She said: "Though the project is a little smaller in scale this year, it felt important to keep the community connection between young and old going and especially wonderful to see the children receive cards from the comfort day visitors too."

Cathryn, teacher at Milnrow Parish Primary School, said: "It’s been great to take part again this year. As a school, we pride ourselves on developing a sense of community and showing love towards others."

Hundreds of Christmas cards were initially sent and received during lockdown, but these connections continue to flourish at Christmas time year after year.