15/12/2025
✨What a year we've had at Choice! ✨
As we start to wind down for the Christmas hols and the New Year, we wanted to give a run down of the amazing year we've had!
🌈We launched our SEND in Sunderland packs - full of guides and information to support parent carers on their send journey, signpost to the right place at the right time and be that village that they need!
🌈 We have been delivering hundreds holistic and counselling from our cosy therapy room that we gave a makeover at the beginning of the year!
🌈 Our SEND in Sunderland Network grew so much we've toured the city, finding bigger and better venues each time to accommodate just how many services and organisations come along!
🌈 We have begun to develop the SEND in South Tyneside network alongside South Tyneside Parent Carer Forum!
🌈We launched our 5th (yes, 5, can you even believe it?!) Rainbow Guide with Northumberland Parent Carer Forum so we now cover Sunderland, South Tyneside, Durham, Gateshead and Northumberland!
🌈 We released our Gateshead Guide alongside Gateshead Parent Carer Forum, Gateshead Council and North East and North Cumbria NHS
🌈 Our Durham guide got a new look and re-launch with the help of MCT Durham PCF CIO - Durham parent carer forum page
🌈 We delivered training sessions for practitioners across the North East, with our most recent being at the University of Sunderland talking about understanding the mental health impact parent carers face.
🌈 We launched our Rainbow Guides app on the 12th December, with a special mention to the guys at Nebula Labs for all their hard work in creating it! It's a project we are so proud of and hope it will help sooo many more parent carers by making it easy and accessible whenever they need it!
🌈We were nominated and shortlisted at the Inclusion North awards and won Runner Up for the Outstanding Achievement Award - which is an amazing achievement for only our 2nd full year!
🌈A special mention to the last member of Choice to join us, Dusty - our special mascot and all round whirlwind, (If it's not nailed down, he'll have scampered off with it!) But how could anyone resist that cute face of his?!?!?!
Well, I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted just catching up on what we got up to! Thank you so much to all of the organisations, services and parent carers who have supported us this year. We never take your support for granted, as without all of you, we wouldn't be doing any of this!
And we're not done yet! Watch this space as there's more to come in 2026!!
Team CWS
