Sunderland charity The Special Lioness 'shocked' by lack of pandemic support for vulnerable children as they provide Easter packs for isolating youngsters

Claire Stewart, 42, and Amy Howes, 34, who both have children with profound disabilities, founded The Special Lioness charity in 2017 after finding there was a lack of support for families in the difficult position of raising children with additional needs.

Now, one year into the coronavirus pandemic, the charity say they are shocked by the lack of support for families with vulnerable children during the pandemic and are going above and beyond this Easter for children missing out on the usual seasonal activities.

Members of the charity delivered 96 Easter packs to vulnerable children missing out on activities due to being vulnerable isolating at home.

Co-founder of The Special Lioness, Claire Stewart, said: “Throughout the pandemic the majority of our families have been shielding their medically vulnerable children and continuing to do so. We have a very close relationship with the members of our group and were shocked by the lack of support and the sheer overwhelming feeling of isolation these families were facing once the pandemic hit.

“Our children have very complex care, medical and social needs and the support mechanisms which usually help our children on a daily basis were stripped away overnight, the majority of children still haven’t returned to School due to their fragility and fear of COVID-19, and we felt we needed to bring a little bag of smiles to those very precious children.”

The Easter packs feature chocolate eggs, an Easter bonnet and arts and crafts accessories and during the pandemic the charity has also delivered similar packs at Halloween and Christmas to ensure vulnerable children do not miss out.

The inspiration behind starting the charity is Claire’s son Bailey, who is not expected to live beyond 10, and Amy’s daughter Aoife, who was also born with a number of complications.

To learn more about The Special Lioness charity and how you can support them, visit their website via this link.

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