Choice Wellbeing Service CIC

23/02/2026

🌈 Rainbow Guide Live Countdown is on! 🌈

And to get us excited for the upcoming big day, we wanted to share some of the incredible organisations we have joining us on the day.

Todays Rainbow Guide Live Spotlight feature is:



We are looking forward to seeing you all there!

To express interest in attending on the day and save us from signing you in, please fill in the form below, where we can ensure that your child’s dietary requirements are met!

https://www.choicewellbeingservice.org/rainbow-guide-live
Team CWS ✨

23/02/2026

📘 Schools White Paper – What This Could Mean for Parent Carers

We know many parent carers are watching closely as the government prepares to publish its Schools White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, we know this because like you, we are waiting in anticipation too as parent carers ourselves.

While we’re waiting for full details, early information suggests there is a focus on:

🤝 Reforming and improving the SEND system
💬 Strengthening support for children with additional needs
📊 Reducing inequalities in school outcomes
🏫 Ensuring schools are better supported to meet diverse needs

We understand that change can feel scary — especially when it affects your child’s education and support. What matters most is that your voices and lived experiences continue to shape what happens next.

As more information becomes available, we’ll share clear updates and what they mean in practice for families, in a Choice way. No jargon, just facts.

You are not alone in this, we are in it too, and always here...

Team CWS

19/02/2026

🌈 Rainbow Guide Live Countdown is on! 🌈

And to get us excited for the upcoming big day, we wanted to share some of the incredible organisations we have joining us on the day.

Todays Rainbow Guide Live Spotlight feature is:

Little SENDsations

We are looking forward to seeing you all there!

To express interest in attending on the day and save us from signing you in, please fill in the form below, where we can ensure that your child’s dietary requirements are met!

https://www.choicewellbeingservice.org/rainbow-guide-live

Team CWS ✨

18/02/2026

Go kids Go are running a free children’s wheelchair mobility-training workshop in Newcastle on Saturday 28th February 1:30pm-5pm.

The workshop is open to all young wheelchair users throughout the region. Anyone wishing to attend should email training@gokidsgo.org.uk

On the workshop we teach skills such as coping with slopes and rough ground, back wheel balancing, road safety and emergency evacuation techniques. We also play games like wheelchair basketball and try out wheelchair dance. We bring extra chairs so mums, dads and siblings can get involved and join in the games. Whilst the objectives are serious the workshops are good fun!

18/02/2026

Set up at Chowdene Family Hub for the CYPs Parent Event.
12.30pm until 2pm for advice, guides and resources.

17/02/2026

🌈 Rainbow Guide Live Countdown is on! 🌈

And to get us excited for the upcoming big day, we wanted to share some of the incredible organisations we have joining us on the day.

Todays Rainbow Guide Live Spotlight feature is:

Intertwined NE

We are looking forward to seeing you all there!

To express interest in attending on the day and save us from signing you in, please fill in the form below, where we can ensure that your child’s dietary requirements are met!

https://www.choicewellbeingservice.org/rainbow-guide-live

Team CWS ✨

16/02/2026

🌈🌈 Rainbow Guide Live Day 🌈🌈

We are excited to announce that we are now able to offer every child a 🥪 FREE PACKED LUNCH! 🥪

With thanks to Sunderland and South Tynesides HAF programmes, we will be able to offer lot's of children a free packed lunch!

Lunches not covered by the programmes will be covered by Choice, so no child goes without 😊

As you can see below, the day is shaping up to be amazing, with soo many organisations and fun involved!

To register your child for a free packed lunch, please fill in the details below!

https://www.choicewellbeingservice.org/rainbow-guide-live

Team CWS ✨✨

16/02/2026

Parent/Carer Get Together - Tomorrow 10.30am At The Rainbow Hub - Come along for a Chat, cuppa and some cake ☕️🍰

15/02/2026

✨ We Need Your Help to Create a Welcoming SEND Family Hub ✨

We are so excited to be opening our new Family SEND Hub at Choice Wellbeing Service — a safe, supportive space for children with additional needs and the families who care for them.

While our funding covers the rent for this much-needed building, we now need your help to turn it into a warm, welcoming environment.

Right now, the rooms are empty — but with your support, they could soon be filled with:
🪑 Comfortable seating for families
🎨 Child-friendly and sensory-safe furniture
🧩 Spaces for workshops, support groups, and connection
🌿 Soft furnishings to create a calm, inviting atmosphere

For many of our families, walking into a new space can feel overwhelming. We want their first experience to be one of comfort, belonging, and understanding.

Every donation — no matter how small — helps us transform this building into a true community hub where families feel supported and children can thrive.

If you can’t donate, please share this post to help us reach more people.

Together, we can create something truly special. 💛

🔗 Donate here: https://gofund.me/76d59eedf

14/02/2026

Thanks for sharing Together for Children 👏🏻

Available to download in your AppStore under Rainbow Guides 🫶🏻

Did you know you can now download the Rainbow Guide Sunderland App? 🌈

Sunderland’s much‑loved Rainbow Guide — the go‑to guide for SEND support, written by parent carers for parent carers — is now even easier to access. 💛

Whether you're feeling overwhelmed, looking for support, or just need to know what services and groups are out there, the Rainbow Guide is designed to be a light in a difficult time, bringing together local organisations, friendly groups, and parent‑led support across the city.

13/02/2026

🫶 You are already handling more than you think you can handle 🫶

Being a parent carer means waking up every day to a role you never applied for, never trained for, and never clock out from.

It means managing medications and meltdowns, appointments and admin, therapies and tears — sometimes all before lunch. It means learning a new language of acronyms and advocating in rooms where you have to be both calm and fierce at the same time.

And somehow, it also means making packed lunches, answering emails, remembering birthdays, and trying to be present for everyone else in your life.

There are days when it feels like too much. When the weight of responsibility presses heavy on your chest. When you wonder how you’re supposed to keep going at this pace.

But here’s the quiet truth: you are already handling more than you ever thought you could.

You didn’t grow stronger because it was easy. You grew stronger because love demanded it.

You’ve developed resilience you never knew you had. You’ve learned patience in moments that would test anyone. You’ve found creativity in problem-solving. You’ve discovered courage in speaking up. You’ve built endurance in the middle of exhaustion.

That doesn’t mean you don’t struggle. It doesn’t mean you don’t cry in the shower or lie awake worrying about the future. Strength and struggle can exist in the same breath.

Being a parent carer isn’t about “coping perfectly.” It’s about showing up again and again, even when you feel emptied out. It’s about loving fiercely in circumstances that are complex and often misunderstood.

If today feels heavy, let this remind you:

You are not weak for finding it hard.
You are not failing because you’re tired.
You are not alone in carrying more than most people see.

You are doing something extraordinary in very ordinary, unseen moments.

And even on the days when you feel like you can’t possibly handle one more thing — you are.

Team CWS

🫶

12/02/2026

Big feelings can feel extra big for our SEND children.
And as parent carers, knowing how to talk about emotions—without overwhelming them or ourselves—can feel really hard.

That’s why we created Busy Book for Busy Brains!

It’s an easy-to-use workbook with:
🐝 simple information to help you talk about mental health and emotions
🐝 fun, low-pressure worksheets you can do together
🐝 activities that help children understand their feelings in ways that make sense to them!

No medical language.
No “one size fits all”.
Just practical, supportive tools you can dip in and out of on your own terms.

If you’ve ever sat there thinking “I want to help, but I don’t know where to start” — this is for you!

This Children’s Mental Health Week, we’re reminding parent carers:
You don’t have to do everything.
You don’t have to do it perfectly.
And you don’t have to do it alone.

Team CWS 🌈