Horwich Advertiser Issue 633

Page 14 March 2026 AD SALES 01204 478812 A DETERMINED 12-year-old who has dyslexia and ADHD spent an entire day reading to raise money for the Chorley children’s hospice that cares for her little sister. Jayda Higginson, who also struggles with visual stress, whichcancausewords tomove around on the page, began her challenge with the Percy Jackson series, by Rick Riordan, and read from 9am until 9pm – just twodays after her birthday. The super-reader powered through 12 hours, and several birthday brownies provided by mumCath, to raise£567–more than five times her goal – for families just like hers. Both Jayda and her little sister Kaia share the same unnamed genetic craniofacial syndrome, and have both been through their own struggles throughout their lives. Derian House has been supporting the family, who live in Preston, for eight years – since Kaiawas a baby. Jayda said:“I’msograteful for what Derian House has done for my family. Thank you so much for all the donations and support. I want to say a huge thanks to my parents – my dad for cheering me on, and my mum for givingme snacks.” Mum Cath said: “We are so proud of Jayda! She loves books, but reading all day like this was a huge challenge. She didn’t give up for a sin- gle minute, and seeing her so determined was incredible – she even did a little happy dance halfway through. “Jayda came up with the idea for the challenge herself. At first, she wanted to do it for 24 hours! But she settled for 12, and we set her fundraising tar- getat£100.Well,sheabsolutely smashed that in just 24 hours.” A FASHION grad- uate from Chorley has teamed up with Derian House Chil- dren’s Hospice to give its charity shop rags a second life. The ground-breaking scheme will help com- bat a problem faced by charity shops across the UK – what to do with clothing donations that are too worn to be sold? Armed with a sewing machine and a degree in fashion and design from Manchester Met- ropolitan University, Victoria Ford has already transformed some of the charity’s unwanted clothing into unique skirts, tops, and accessories – including handbags crafted from old blow-up beds! “I think sustain- ability is definitely important right now, and for the future of fashion,” said Victoria, whose one-of-a-kind designs are now avail- able to buy at Derian House’s shop in Chorley town centre. “Rather than letting things go to waste, I wanted to help Derian House to give their unsellable clothing a new life, and to turn them into something others can enjoy.” With fast fashion on DERIAN HOUSE SPECIAL Upcycling: Victoria with some of her creations (Photo credit: Derian House) FROM RAGS TO RUNWAY Fashion student Victoria gives charity shop waste a makeover way of expressing your individuality, while also having fun with fashion. It’s about turning it on its head and thinking outside the box. For example, you might find a skirt in a charity shop and think, wow, that fab- ric would look really nice as a top. “A lot of my clothes are either homemade or bought from charity shops. Me and my friends will often go into Chorley or Manchester and do a little charity shop crawl – you can always find proper good gems. “I think we all need to take a look at what we wear and how we wear it. And I think if you buy something brand new, you should be mindful of how long you might wear it for. I think we could all work on being more sustainable, while also wearing unique pieces that stand out.” Mick Croskery, head of income generation at Derian House in Chorley, said: “Just like other charity shops, ours have become inundated with rags – low-quality and worn clothing that we are unable to sell. Projects like Victoria’s show that there is a cre- ative way to make these items valuable again, while reducing waste – helping both the envi- ronment and the vital work Derian House does for local children and families.” Derian House has four charity shops across the North West – in Chor- ley, Horwich, Leigh and Blackburn – that provide a vital source of income to care for children and their families. Two new shops will also open in Bamber Bridge and Westhoughton in the coming months. Derian House cares for more than 400 babies, children, young people and their families from across the North West, helping them to make the most of every moment. Care is free to fam- ilies but it costs more than £6million to run the hospice every year. The charity only receives around 30 per cent of government funding, meaning it relies on kind-hearted supporters to raise 70p in every £1. Jayda turns pages into pounds Challenge: Jayda enjoys a brownie on her Book-a-thon (Photo credit: Derian House) Big sister: Jayda with Kaia (Photo credit: Derian House) the rise, charities are get- ting flooded with clothes that are too worn or dam- aged to sell. These rags could once be sold on for recycling, but now are beginning to cost the charity to dispose of. Vi c t or i a added : “Derian House is local to me – I have taken a tour of the hospice myself and I think it’s really amazing. What they do there is just incredible, and it does so much for families in the com- munity, so it’s great to be involved. “I’ve always wanted to do fashion design, and have always been inter- ested in upcycling pieces, in fact I’ve made many clothes that way. “I think it’s a great