Who are we?
ORCHYD is a registered charity run by representatives of the churches in the Ruislip area.
Registered Charity Number 1072239
What do we do?
Our main activity is to provide a ten day holiday every year at the beginning
of the school holidays for twenty physically disabled children aged
between 8 and 11 years. The holiday is provided free of charge
and children are drawn from all over the country. Every year we
embark on new innovations to ensure that we organise the very best
holiday, doing exciting things whilst maintaining high standards of
safety and security for the children and giving them a holiday to
remember. We also provide equipment and services to assist
disabled children.
Who is it for?
The children, nominated by schools, doctors or local authorities
throughout the country, are selected on the basis of need. This
may be due to their individual medical condition or the social need of
either the child, their family, or carer.
Priority is given to those children whose medical condition may exclude
them from either taking a family holiday or taking advantage of similar
holiday schemes.
The holiday aims to offer the child an exciting ten days in the company
of children of similar age, in a safe and secure environment and at the
same time, provide their families with the opportunity to take a well
earned rest.
We also aim to explore helping disabled children locally.
How did it start?
In 1971, Ruislip Christian Council, with the help of the Spastics
Society, organised a holiday for physically disabled children.
The holiday has since been run annually. The Spastics Society
closed down its holiday operations in 1980 and Ruislip Christian
Council took full control of funding and organising.
Where is it held?
The holiday is based at St Martin's Church Hall, in the centre of
Ruislip. This is a new building with excellent facilities and
close to a park and shops.
Who are the helpers?
There is a team of about 150-200 helpers who cook, make beds, entertain
the children, etc. We have a doctor on call an a number of specialised
nurses to give day and night cover. There is a coach outing on
most days for which each child has their own personal helper as well as
accompanying nursing Staff. All these helpers are volunteers - we
have no paid staff.
Who pays for it?
The holiday is provided free of charge. It costs about £12,000 in
total. Some of this money is raised locally by fund raising
events, collections and individual donations. Whilst we help
ourselves as much as possible, we do depend on generous help from local
companies and friendly societies. Without this help we could not
continue what we believe is a worthwhile local community project.
What Next?
We currently are looking at running one day trips
and building a permanent Base/store for ORCHYD
ORCHYD
STORAGE
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