Action for Children
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| Founded | 1869 |
|---|---|
| Type | Charity |
| Registration no. | 1097940 (England and Wales) SC038092 (Scotland) |
| Focus | Children and young people's welfare |
| Location |
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Key people
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Sir Tony Hawkhead Chief Executive John O'Brien Council of Trustees Chair |
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Employees
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7,000 |
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Volunteers
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4,000 |
| Slogan | "As long as it takes" |
| Website | www |
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Formerly called
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NCH Action for Children National Children's Home (NCH) |
Action for Children (formerly National Children’s Home) is a UK children’s charity committed to helping vulnerable and neglected children and young people, and their families, throughout the UK.
Through 650 projects and services based around the UK, the charity works with over 300,000 children, young people, and their families. It helps and supports people in areas as diverse as disability respite therapy, foster care, adoption and child neglect.
The website states: "We work to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential."
Its national headquarters is in Watford and it is a registered charity under English and Scottish law. In 2010/11 it had a gross income of £200 million, making it one of the 20 largest charities in the UK.
The first "Children's Home" was founded in 1868 by Methodist minister Thomas Bowman Stephenson who had been moved by the fate of street children in London. The first home was a renovated stable in Church Street, Waterloo. The first two boys were admitted on 9 July 1869. In 1871 the home was moved to Bonner Road, Lambeth, and girls were admitted. The home was approved by the Wesleyan Methodist Conference in the same year. A year later, in 1872, a second home was opened in Edgworth, Lancashire. An emigration scheme was set up in 1873 and a branch in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada opened.
The homes were divided into small family units run by a "house mother" and "house father" which was in marked contrast to the large institutions and workhouses common at the time. Training was also an important aspect. A childcare course was set up in 1878 and the graduates of this program were called "the Sisterhood" or "the Sisters of the children" went on to work in the Children's Home.
An Industrial School at Milton, Gravesend was taken over in 1875 and a children's refuge in Ramsey on the Isle of Man was taken over in 1882. With the opening of the Princess Alice Orphanage in Birmingham the Home was renamed to "Children's Home and Orphanage".
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Wikipedia