We would like to say a big thank you to Andrew and Michaela McLaughlin who held a fundraiser in aid of the Centre which raised an amazing £230. We would also like to thank Tina and Norman Coulter who held another competition which raised an additional amazing £240. A special thank you also to Marty Harkin (Jacket Potato Bar) who kindly donated his prize of £210. This fundraising is very much appreciated and will go towards the general running costs of the Centre.

A big thank you to everyone who supported Little Orchids Information night tonight. It was a brilliant night and we received lots of positive feedback from parents who attended including the organisations / businesses who shared valuable information to us all.

Thanks to:

A big thank you to Gerry Conway who was our Guest Speaker at our AGM on 12th October. He gave a great talk on the best things you can give a child are good memories, the impact of ACEs: Adverse Childhood experiences and how can we improve children’s capacity to cope with stress and the importance of Parents looking after themselves. His talk was enjoyed by all. A big thank you to everyone who attended we had a great turnout.

We would like to thank Caroline Austin who nominated us for a donation kindly awarded by BT NI Plc. for £500 which will go towards the general running costs of the centre.

Little Orchids is absolutely delighted with receiving our cheque from Sainsbury's as charity of the year 2016/2017. We received an astonishing £11, 410. We would like to thank all the staff at Sainsbury's, Parents who supported us throughout the year and the local community who voted for us ans supported us throughout the year.

We would like to thank Progressive Building Society for their kind donation of £1,000 to the centre and Paul McConway who put our name forward. It is very much appreciated and will go towards the day to day running costs of the centre.

Staff at Little Orchids on a lunch time walk as part of the Walk Away Your Worries’ Campaign which launched on Monday 1st May.

Ellen Hastings, a qualified instructor on reflexology, kindly came to the centre to deliver a fun workshop on reflexology for parents and children with additional needs to learn how to use a gentle non-invasive complementary therapy on the pressure points on the hands and feet. These techniques produce great effects to produce calmness, aid sleep and a natural solution to health concerns.

Little Orchids set up an information stall at the Carers Support, Carer and staff information event on 23rd February.

What a surprise visit, Debbie Sheehan visited the centre on 20/12/2016 to present Maura with a cheque for an amazing £2,500. This money was raised by her daughter Rachel Sheehan who is originally from the city but now lives in San Francisco with her little son who was diagnosed with Beckwith Wiederman Syndrome and Autism. At Easter this year Rachel, her son, family and friends did a sponsored walk to raise awareness and funds. We thank you so much for thinking of us as we rely on fundraising for the day to day running of the centre and to purchase resources required.

We held open consultation  on Thursday 08^th December 6.00 – 8.00pm and open day on Friday 09^th December 9.00 – 1.00pm. 

We asked everyone to come along and give their views on the need of this service. We really appreciated all the Mums, Dads, Grandparents and Professionals who dropped in to fill out petals to complete our orchid.

Staff at Little Orchids have just completed a 4 week Baby Massage training with Parents in the Centre in November 2016 as part of gaining their qualification to receive their professional Diploma in Baby Massage. Staff plan to run the Baby Massage course again after Christmas for other Parents.