Squire's Woking aims to raise £5,000 for Cherry Trees' respite care, with a raffle on 4 November and £1 from every grotto ticket from 18 November.
Squire’s garden centre in Horsell has chosen Cherry Trees, the East Clandon charity that gives short respite breaks to children with complex disabilities, as its Charity of the Year for 2026-27, and aims to raise £5,000 for it over the next twelve months.
The first two dates are already set. At the centre’s Christmas shopping evening on Wednesday 4 November, Cherry Trees will run a festive raffle. Two weeks later, on Wednesday 18 November, the annual Christmas grotto opens, and £1 from every grotto ticket sold over the festive period goes to the charity, according to a joint announcement from the charity and the garden centre.
Cherry Trees says it supports more than 60 children, many of whom live or go to school in Woking and the villages around it. The children stay at one of its two homes, in East Clandon and in Liphook, usually overnight or for up to 48 hours, sometimes longer depending on what a family needs.
“I’ve never walked away and worried”
Melody Barnett’s son Leo is 15 and has been going to stay at Cherry Trees for more than seven years. Leo has a severe learning disability and autism, and the breaks give the rest of the family a chance to rest and spend time together, which she says is hard to do alongside caring for him.
“It’s not just a lifeline for us, it’s also a lifeline for Leo,” she said. “What I really love is I know I can leave Leo at Cherry Trees, I’ve never walked away and worried.”
The charity’s own description of what it is for is blunt. “Caring for a child with a complex disability can be exhausting, isolating and emotionally and physically challenging,” it says. “Without a chance to rest and re-energise, families can be at risk of breaking down.” Parents, it says, call it their “lifeline”.
What the two sides say
Rob Hope, Head of Partnerships at Cherry Trees, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been chosen as the new charity partner for Squire’s Garden Centre in Woking.
“To be selected by such a respected and trusted Surrey business is an honour and we are looking forward to working with the Squire’s Woking team to make the most of this year-long opportunity, raising awareness and vital funds to support the children and families who rely on us. Thank you, Squire’s.”
Jim Campion, centre manager at Squire’s Woking, said: “Squire’s Charity of the Year programme is an important part of life at the centre. As a business at the heart of the communities we serve, we’re proud to support organisations making a real difference locally.
“We’re looking forward to working with the Cherry Trees team over the next twelve months, helping to raise funds as well as awareness of the fantastic work they do for local families. We hope that together we can make a really positive contribution.”
Beyond the raffle and the grotto, Cherry Trees plans to hold fundraising collections at the centre and to bring some of the children and young people it looks after to visit. Squire’s says its charities are chosen each year by the staff at each centre; the family-owned firm, founded in 1936, has 17 garden centres across Surrey, Sussex, Berkshire and north and west London.
What £5,000 sits against
In the 2025/26 financial year Cherry Trees gave 54,867 hours of care to children and young people from Surrey, Hampshire and nearby, supporting 63 children and their families, the charity says. Running that costs it about £3.4m a year. Local councils pay half; the other half has to come from fundraising and donations.
The charity was founded in 1980 by a group of parents and doctors, and as well as short breaks it offers wellbeing events and financial grants to families.
What it means for you
- Shopping evening, Wednesday 4 November: buy a raffle ticket at the Cherry Trees stall at Squire’s Woking, Littlewick Road, Horsell GU21 4XR (centre page). Times and the grotto ticket price have not been announced yet.
- Grotto from Wednesday 18 November: every ticket sends £1 to Cherry Trees. Our Santa’s grotto guide compares it with the free grotto at Victoria Place and the Mizens Railway Santa trains.
- Giving directly: Cherry Trees is at cherrytrees.org.uk, phone 01483 222507. More dates for the year are listed in our What’s On section.
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