top of page

Your Invitation

An invitation to the SPECIAL CHILDREN’S CHRISTMAS PARTY has arrived and you are wondering “What’s it all about????”

​

You probably know who organised that you receive the invitation – it will be your child’s teacher, medical professional, support group co-ordinator or someone else who provides support to you and your family.

TO RECEIVE AN INVITATION IN QUEENSLAND

  • Age - birth to 12 years of age

  • Diagnosed with a life-threatening illness or a condition requiring significant on-going medical treatment or hospitalisation – eg heart defects.

  • Have been diagnosed with one or more of the NCCD’s four broad disability categories: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional.   That is children who are receiving substantial or extensive level of adjustments at school (as documented in the NCCD), due to a diagnosed disability of autism spectrum disorder, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, physical impairment, speech-language impairment and vision impairment.(https://education.qld.gov.au/student/Documents/rar-school-information-students-families.pdf )

  • Children diagnosed with any of the disability categories above but not yet attending school and being supported through early intervention.
     

CRITERIA TO RECEIVE AN INVITATION IN NSW       

  • Age - birth to 12 years of age

  • Diagnosed with a life-threatening illness or an illness that requires significant on-going medical treatment or hospitalisation – eg heart defects.

  • Physical disability (P)

  • Mild intellectual disability (IM)

  • Behavioural issues (BD)

  • Moderate intellectual disability (IO)

  • Mental health issues (ED emotional disturbance)

  • Severe intellectual disability (IS)

  • Blind or vision impaired (V)

  • Range of disabilities with similar support needs

  • (MC multi categorical)

  • Deaf or hearing impaired (H)

  • Autism (Au)

  • Deaf Blind impaired (DB)

  • Autism and/or moderate intellectual disability (IO/Au)

  • Disability support prior to school (EI early intervention)

​

CRITERIA TO RECEIVE AN INVITATION IN DARWIN

  • Age - birth to 12 years of age

  • Diagnosed with a life-threatening illness or an illness that requires significant on-going medical treatment or hospitalisation – eg heart defects.

  • Have been diagnosed with one or more of the NCCD’s four broad disability categories: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional.   That is children who are receiving substantial or extensive level of adjustments at school (as documented in the NCCD), due to a diagnosed disability of autism spectrum disorder, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, physical impairment, speech-language impairment and vision impairment.

  • Children diagnosed with any of the disability categories above but not yet attending school and being supported through early intervention.

  • Living in severely disadvantaged circumstances.

OK, so now you understand why the invitation arrived.
What do I do now?

01

There is no need to R.S.V.P. but if you can’t attend the event, have received invitations for the same child from different organisations or simply don’t wish to attend, please return the invitation(s) you don’t need to the organisation that sent them and they can be re-issued to someone on the waiting list.

02

Make a note in your diary or on the family calendar so that you don’t miss the day.

03

Watch your child’s excitement build as the day approaches.

WHAT HAPPENS ON THE DAY

​

The details for each Party are different but in general, this is what you can expect and by the way it’s all free. There is no provision for handling money on the day.


You will be greeted outside the venue and stickers will be placed on everyone in your group. This is one of our child safety measures so that we can easily identify why each individual is on site. Security may question anyone who is not wearing a sticker.
 

The venue will be set up with all the static displays such as military vehicles, emergency vehicles and whatever else is offered to us; amusement rides such as jumping castles and a merry-go-round even rock climbing or mini golf if it’s available; arts and crafts tables; temporary tattoos; and a stage. There will also be food and drinks with a snack bag provided for each invited child that will contain fantastic single serve items such as muesli bars, packaged fruits, chips or biscuits. There will also be a sausage sizzle and cold drinks available for the whole family … oh, did I mention you are welcome to bring the family along to enjoy the fun? Please do.  There will be volunteers all over the place who are ready and willing to help in any way they can.  The stage show will have started and will continue throughout the Party with music and magic and maybe a celebrity or two! Please come in and enjoy everything the day has to offer.

 

Our enormous toy room stacked with bags full of gifts will be open the entire time the Party is running. This allows our invited families to choose when they would like to collect their child’s gifts and monitor the length of any line to minimise queuing time. Please note – only the child with an invitation receives gifts but we try to choose something for everyone’s bag that can involve more than one player. ALL the gifts we supply are first quality and selected with great care each year to ensure we add to the enjoyment of the day

After receiving their gifts, the children have the opportunity to see Santa and have a quiet chat with him. If you intend to take photos with Santa, we ask that you have your camera or phone ready so as to minimise the waiting time for the other children in the queue.
 

If you feel the gifts your child received are not appropriate, then you are welcome to re-visit the toy room at a quieter moment to discuss an exchange. Rest assured that we will have more than enough gifts with the surplus being distributed to local hospitals or charities after the event.
 

​
 

MY HEAD IS SPINNING WITH ALL THIS...WHAT DO I REALLY NEED TO KNOW?  


We understand that this can all sound a little daunting but the general idea is this –

The day is designed to be a great big party for up to  1200 invited children who might not otherwise get to go to a Christmas Party. A day where they are made to feel welcome, are not judged and where everyone is dedicated to making it the best day of the year for the kids and their families.
 

Your local business community has made the whole thing possible by financially supporting the event. Thanks to their generosity, everything is free at the Party. Please take a moment to look for our Certificate of Merit in the businesses you visit and just say ‘thanks’.

 

​

YOU MUST BRING

  • The invitation.

  • Your Christmas spirit

  • THIS MAY MAKE IT MORE COMFORTABLE (just remember there will be that sack full of toys to carry out at the end of the day) – Something to sit on – a picnic blanket or chair that is easy to carry.

  • A picnic basket for the additional family members. We do supply extra food but are never sure just how big the family groups will be.

  • Wear cool, comfortable clothes and shoes … and make a decision about sun protection for the family.

  • If your child has difficulty dealing with large crowds or noise, you may like to consider bringing their preferred style of hearing protection. The event is totally inclusive and, if your child does find it confronting and melts down, you will find that people are willing only to help and not to judge.
     

 

​
 

GENERAL RULES REGARDING INVITATIONS

 

Only the eligible child receives an invitation but family members are very welcome to come along to the event.

The physical, official invitation must be presented on the day to gain entry to the venue. Photos, scans, emails or any other electronic versions will not be accepted.
 

If the child is ill and unable to attend, a third party is able to collect gifts on behalf of the child but this is not intended as an excuse to not bring the child as we believe the event is an important social opportunity not just a toy giveaway.
 

NO invitations will be available for collection at the gate. 

We Need Your Support Today!

bottom of page