As part of the biggest single day of volunteering, teenagers are being encouraged to write letters or draw pictures to seriously ill children in hospitals to combat isolation and loneliness for CSV Make a Difference Day on Saturday 29 October 2011.

Writing a letter or drawing a picture is a simple but very effective way to connect with children who may feel isolated and lonely in hospitals. Some children have been in and out of hospitals for most of their lives and may have lost contact with their friends. Gather your mates to write letters, which can be as long as an essay or as short as a post card and make a seriously ill child smile.

Make a Difference Day, part of the UK volunteering charity CSV, have teamed up with Post Pals, a charity dedicated to providing very ill children with letters, emails and gifts to help them cope with their illnesses and make them smile. Make a Difference Day is giving away a free inspirational how-to guide to help write the letters and the first 100 people can claim a free pen set donated from pen company, Zebra.    

Each year tens of thousands of people take part in the campaign to benefit the community. The nation plants thousands of flowers in community gardens, cemeteries and school playgrounds; helps out in local charity shops; knits hats and gloves for premature babies and visits lonely people in nursing homes, homeless shelters and hospitals – to give a few examples.

Other free How-to Guides include:

•    ‘How-to make a chocolatey difference’ an exclusive chocolate Fridge Cake recipe by Chef, Sam Stern
•    ‘How-to volunteer to combat loneliness’
•    ‘How-to knit an animal blanket’ (because pets get lonely too!)
•    ‘How-to get online’ for people who have never used the internet
•    ‘How-to combat community isolation’

CSV Make a Difference Day is on Saturday 29 October 2011, with activities taking place a week either side. Project Organisers can register their event on the CSV Make a Difference Day website to encourage more people to attend and claim their free Action Pack, which includes certificates, stickers, t-shirts, how-to guides, and a Handbook which contains advice, case studies, hints and tips to help plan and carry out an activity.

To register your event visit or find out more information visit www.csv.org.uk/difference  or call FREEPHONE 0800 284 533 or email difference@csv.org.uk

For further press information: Francesca Toma on 020 7812 0037/ 07966 168686 or Jason Tanner on 020 7812 0038 / 07941 433598

Notes for Editors

CSV Make a Difference Day takes place on Saturday 29 October 2011 and activities take part a week either side. More than three quarters of a million people have taken part since the launch of CSV Make a Difference Day in 1996, and thousands more are expected to give time rather than money to improve their local community this year. The campaign is organised by CSV (Community Service Volunteers).

CSV creates opportunities for people to take an active part in the life of their communities through volunteering, training and community action.

Help us in the quest to celebrate young achievers. Ambition AXA Awards are targeted at 11-18 year olds and have been created to recognise outstanding young people involved in The Arts, Community, Enterprise, Science and Sport.  The winner in each category receives a bespoke mentoring prize worth up to £40,000 per category to progress their ambitions so that they can continue to make that all important difference. CSV is helping to judge. Please encourage young people you know to apply by visiting www.ambitionaxaawards.com or www.facebook.com/ambitionaxaawards