The Kids’ Village Gala dinner was held on 3rd October at the Grand Hotel, Birmingham and raised over £119,000 for its capital campaign to raise the funds to build Kids’ Village, the UK’s first holiday village exclusively for critically ill children and their families to enjoy a short respite holiday.
Hosted by Heart FM presenter Ed James, the Gala dinner had over 200 guests in attendance who enjoyed entertainment and fundraising activity throughout the evening, as well as hearing more about Kids’ Village and project progress from Co-Founder Sam Fletcher-Goodwin, CEO Katrina Cooke and Kids’ Village Chairman Doug Wright MBE DL.
Fundraising on the night included a live and silent auction, raffle and live pledges, and the event was also supported by sponsors including Wright Restaurants t/a McDonalds, Lioncroft, South & City College Birmingham, Awan Marketing, Mercia Design & Build and Hollywood Monster.
Commenting on the Gala success, Katrina Cooke said:
The Kids’ Village Gala dinner sold out within days of going on sale earlier this year, and we are so grateful for the support of sponsors and guests in attendance last week. To raise over £100,000 in one night at our inaugural Birmingham dinner surpassed all expectations and this provides vital funds towards our capital appeal to build Kids’ Village just a few miles outside of Birmingham in Wychnor.
Providing a broader update on the capital appeal at the Gala dinner, Chairman Doug Wright said:
Thank you to everyone who supported last week’s Gala in any way including those who provided auction and raffle prizes, and those who attended and donated on the night. I was delighted to share with guests that we have now reached £1.52m in pledges since the Kids’ Village launch at the start of this year.
To find out more about Kids’ Village and to register your interest in attending the 2025 Gala Dinner please visit kidsvillage.org.uk or email events@kidsvillage.org.uk
