Hi readers 😊

What a sunny Monday right?!

Not only is it the start of the new week, it’s also the start of the new month. For many, December is a time to celebrate, spend time with loved ones and get a couple of extra days off. So, at the start of this month, I want to give thanks to those service givers who may not get the extra time off or be able to spend as much time with their loved ones and also remember those who may find the holidays difficult due to their circumstances.

With that in mind, this week’s edition is here to celebrate achievements, expression and all-round amazing stuff. If that’s not enough to keep you motivated for the week ahead, then what is?!

So, without further ado, here is your small burst and weekly roundup of positive news to start your week as you mean to go on, ready to kick the world’s butt.

* Well done to the CYP award winners of 2019! Huge congratulations to all of those that were shortlisted, highly commended and those that won! Here’s a special shout-out to some of our members:

Congratulations to

• the NSPCC: Glasgow Infant and Family Team for being highly commended for the Children in Care Award
• The Fostering Network: Step up Step Down programme for winning the Family Support Award
• The Children’s Society: The Rise Project for winning the Advice and Guidance Award
• The NSPCC: Poverty, Children and Families Training Programme for winning the Recruitment and Professional Development Award
• Just for Kids Law for being highly commended for the Children and Young People’s Charity Award

* #IfIWerePM – common-sense calls from children explaining what they would do if they were PM.  Last Friday, the children’s sector joined forces to call on political parties to set out how they are prioritising children and young people. This resulted in an open letter which has been signed by many of our members, #ChildrenAtTheHeart demonstrating sector unity and #IfIWerePM promoting the voice of children and young people. Hear from Gabby, Jason and Tae who express concerns for education, safety and FGM.

*Want an alternative advert calendar? Action for Happiness have produced a Kindness Calendar to take you right into the new year. Best of all, it's healthy, available in 16 languages and will genuinely warm your heart as well as others. Although I missed yesterday (day 1: sharing the calendar) I have done so today and it's not too late for you to do so too! Drop me a tweet at @noori_piperdy if you decide to take it on, I need an accountability partner! 😊

* Christmas Together by Hillsong UK and the Topé Project are now accepting referrals for 2019! Christmas Together is a Christmas Day event which aims to combat loneliness for young care leavers. The event is run by Hillsong UK and the Topé Project who have been running this event for several years. For a care leaver, who is or has been looked-after by their local authority, Christmas can be a difficult time for a number of reasons. Christmas Together offers a warm, friendly and care-free environment for care leavers on Christmas Day, a day full of people, food, activities, laughter and joy - just how we’d want to experience Christmas.

* Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not – Dr Seuss.

That’s it from me, I hope you enjoyed this week’s edition of #makethemostofmonday. If you did, please share it using the hashtag above! If you feel you’re doing something super positive that should be included in next week's edition, drop us a line at [email protected]. I hope you have a lovely rest of your week and this has inspired you to not only keep going until Friday, but to give it your best possible shot 😊