Providing ‘quilted hugs’ to care leavers aged between 16 and 25 who are living independently after their time in the local authority care system.
Why Hugs?
Each year more than 11,000 young people over the age of 16 leave the care system and move out into the world with limited support and few possessions. The project was inspired by the poet and recent chancellor of the University of Manchester, Lemn Sissay OBE, who, at the age of 12, returned to local authority care from the long-term foster placement he had been in since he was a baby. Founder, Maggie Lloyd-Jones, was inspired to set up Quilts for Care Leavers to make ‘quilted hugs’ for young people leaving local authority care after hearing Lemn tell an audience that what he had really wanted during that time, was a hug.
Knowing the comfort a quilt can bring Maggie gathered a team together in 2018 to make 120 quilts to be offered to Care Leavers at Christmas Day Dinners run by Gold from the Stone, the charity initiated by Lemn. In 2022 Quilts for Care Leavers provided around 1000 quilts to over 20 dinners and outreach programmes. Now we are increasing our reach by offering quilts throughout the year via Local Authority care teams, universities and colleges and charities supporting young care leavers.
Our Makers gather in our active Facebook group to share information, support and inspiration.
Our quilts and bags are made by our fantastic volunteers from donated fabric. Thousands of hours go into them each year. In the last year we have donated over a thousand quilts to young people between the ages of 16 and 25 leaving the care system.
They are transported around the country and offered to young people at Christmas Dinners, through university and college Care Leaver support teams, via Local Authority care teams and through charity groups supporting young Care Leavers.
We distribute throughout the United Kingdom, with dedicated sub groups working in Northern Ireland and Scotland. Where possible we try to gift quilts close to where they are made.
Are you a UK quilter or wannabe quilter who wants to learn more about how you can help us?
Are you supporting young Care Leavers in the UK and want to know more about how we can help you?
“The young people were very impressed with the selection to choose from and the high quality of the quilts received far exceeded expectations. They all seem to be quite overwhelmed by the fact that people across the country - strangers - care enough to do this for them. “Heartwarming,” “thrilled,” “gobsmacked” (in a good way), ”moving,” “happy,” “disbelief that this was actually for me and not a mistake” are some of the comments about how receiving the quilts made them feel.
Huddersfield Christmas Dinner
