A 12-month charity partnership involving Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce has helped change the lives of ten disabled children across South Yorkshire.

Last autumn, the Chamber chose Newlife the Charity for Disabled Children as its ‘Charity of the Year’ and since then has raised £4,436 so that families in the area could get the specialist equipment they urgently needed and that local statutory services wouldn’t provide. This has included a wheelchair, postural seating and a safety bed.

One of the children to benefit is six-year-old Lucas Rodermond, from Doncaster. His fully padded specialist bed keeps him safe at night as he can no longer hurt himself by banging against anything hard if he has a night-time seizure. As a direct result of his complex condition he has absolutely no awareness of danger and he would previously get up in the middle of the night, climbing over safety gates and on furniture and windowsills.

Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Andrew Denniff said: “Newlife have been wonderful partners during the past few months as our Charity of the Year. They have fully embraced the role and have used the wide variety of Chamber events and networks to maximise their year, both to profile the charity and to generate much need income. The charity’s regional fundraiser Caroline has been a credit to her organisation and she has been a welcome visitor to our many events, keeping in regular contact with our staff at Genesis Park.”

The charity’s Regional Fundraising and Awareness Manager Caroline Artschan said: “The support of Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce has helped make a huge difference to the lives of ten South Yorkshire children in the past year. I would like to add my own ‘thank you’ to those of their families’.”