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A crucial Christmas to make a difference: The Smith Family urges Australians to dig deep to help thousands of students experiencing poverty to catch up and keep up at school in 2021

Media releases

26 November 2020

With an immensely challenging year almost behind us, children’s education charity The Smith Family is calling on Australians to band together this Christmas to ensure that thousands of students living in disadvantage can return to their learning in 2021, with the vital support they need to successfully continue their education journey.

While 2020 has been tumultuous for so many across the country, it threatens to have a long-term, significant impact on the 1.2 million Australian children and young people who were already living in poverty before the pandemic.

"Even before COVID-19, our families faced acute financial hardship – many struggling to access life’s most basic needs,” says The Smith Family CEO Dr Lisa O’Brien. “This year more families than ever are feeling financial pressure and we’re worried that, as a result, children will have slipped back at school. That’s why the children The Smith Family supports really need extra help to keep up with their learning in 2021.”

With generous support from the public, The Smith Family aims to raise $4.3 million nationally through its annual Christmas Appeal. This will provide 9,086 children with essential learning and mentoring programs to help

“Remote learning and school disruption has impacted on all students this year, and children living in disadvantage have been amongst those most significantly affected,” said Dr O’Brien.

“When students fall behind in their learning they can become unmotivated. This, in turn, reduces their desire to go to school, and our research shows that when attendance slips, so does educational achievement.

“That’s why in 2021 we must make sure students who may have fallen behind their classmates are given the right support, so they can catch up, and stay engaged in their learning.”

The out-of-school learning and mentoring programs provided by The Smith Family give students the skills and motivation they need to stay in school, open up more opportunities for themselves, and create better futures. These include student2student, which helps young students improve their reading skills by pairing them with older ‘reading buddies’, as well as after-school Learning Clubs.

Along with donations to its Christmas Appeal, The Smith Family is also calling on the community to support its traditional Toy and Book Appeal – which will see nearly 30,000 children supported by The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program receive gifts in time for Christmas Day.

“The Smith Family’s origins lie in Christmas giving and while the focus of our work has evolved to helping break the cycle of poverty through support for their education, we’re proud to continue the tradition of delivering toys and books to children in need at Christmas, particularly this Christmas after such a challenging year,” Dr O’Brien said.

“We want to ensure each child wakes up to a special gift on Christmas Day that will make them smile – and allow them to hope for a brighter year in 2021.”

You can help this Christmas by:

Making a donation to help more Australian students access the learning and mentoring programs they need in 2021 to catch up and keep up at school
Bringing a smile to the face of a child in need by purchasing a toy or book through The Smith Family’s online charity gift shop and/or donating a new toy or book
Purchasing a Primary School Pack, High School Pack and/or a Closing the Gap pack to ensure children are equipped to excel in 2021
Sponsoring a child through The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program, which provides students with long-term, wrap-around support for their education
Giving back and volunteering your time, skills and energy to support The Smith Family’s life-changing work

For more information, go to www.thesmithfamily.com.au/sharechristmas or call 1800 024 069

High res photos, b-roll and CEO soundbites available for download here.

Media Enquiries:
Michael Tarquinio, Media Advisor, 0481 903 439, Michael.Tarquinio@thesmithfamily.com.au
Natasha Surdich, Media Advisor, 0431 525 989,Natasha.Surdich@thesmithfamily.com.au

Media contacts:

Andrew Dickson | National Media Manager (National) - 0421 285 529 | andrew.dickson@thesmithfamily.com.au
Carla Horton | Senior Media Advisor (QLD & WA) - 0423 618 776 | carla.horton@thesmithfamily.com.au
Reid Jermyn | Media Advisor (VIC, SA & NT) - 0412 803 566 | reid.jermyn@thesmithfamily.com.au
Ben Chenoweth | Senior Media Advisor (NSW, ACT & TAS) - 0413 346 934 | ben.chenoweth@thesmithfamily.com.au

The Smith Family is a national children’s education charity that helps young Australians experiencing disadvantage to create better futures for themselves through harnessing the power of education. We partner with around 800 Australian schools and work with over 162,000 children and young people experiencing disadvantage access our education support programs to help them overcome . For more information, visit thesmithfamily.com.au