How Stagecoach’s selfless staff saved local charity the Chronicle Sunshine Fund’s Santa Grotto Bus from being scrapped
Not all heroes wear capes, some drive buses – everything you need to know about Stagecoach’s Santa Bus for the Chronicle Sunshine Fund in Newcastle city centre this Christmas
- An update to the plans in place for the Chronicle Sunshine Fund’s Santa bus, which had been due to arrive in Newcastle city centre for the seventh year that we’ve worked with Stagecoach Slatyford to deliver a free, accessible Santa Grotto Bus to families and children.
- The Sunshine Fund is a small North East charity that supports babies, children and young people living with disabilities and terminal illness by providing specialist equipment that is unavailable on the NHS, yet can significantly improve the day-to-day lives of local families.
- The Santa Grotto Bus experience has grown year-on-year, with the demand for budget-friendly festive activities, suitable for all ages and needs, more needed than ever.
- This year, the Santa Bus was granted prime position among the Christmas markets, following months of planning between the charity and the council. We were excited to bring the experience to Nelson Street across two weekends (Friday 5th to Sunday 7th and Friday 12th to Sunday 14th December), with visits to local SEND schools scheduled for the week between.
- With all plans set in place, the charity received news that almost forced the plans to be cancelled, but the selfless bus drivers at the Slatyford depot came forward with a plan and have saved Christmas for all. Three weeks before the bus was scheduled to arrive in Toon, the charity was told that the bus wouldn’t be allowed to leave until 20:30pm on the Fridays and Saturdays due to HVM barriers that block the road’s exit.
- While the charity understands the importance of keeping the Christmas markets a safe environment, this sudden and unprecedented change threw a major obstacle in terms of delivering this experience. For context, the charity consists of just 5 team members, and the Santa Bus is supported by staff at Stagecoach Slatyford who generously donate their time on a voluntary basis. The days are long, cold and tiring, yet the charity now needed to consider asking volunteers to extend their working days, leave the bus unattended for three hours, find another location or scrap the whole thing. Not only is this impractical, but it raises potential safety concerns.
- The Sunshine Fund and Stagecoach instead worked together to put extra measures in place to allow the Santa Bus to go ahead for a seventh year. However, this has meant that the charity has incurred additional costs of up to £1,000. We’re therefore telling the story of our experience bringing the Santa Bus for 2025 to life in the hope that as many families as possible will support it, and the charity, in raising vital funds for our Christmas equipment appeal.
- David Wilson, Head of Charity at The Sunshine Fund, said: “Our Santa Bus isn’t about generating profit, it’s about providing opportunities because everybody deserves the chance to meet Santa at Christmas, regardless of their age, needs, or financial position. Cancelling this event just wasn’t an option for us and across the team we agreed that we had to make this happen, and we’re extremely grateful to our friends at Stagecoach for going above and beyond to support this important mission.
- Thanks to the extra work put in by Stagecoach and the charity, the accessible Santa Grotto Bus will be going ahead on both weekends, and the bus will be open for visits between 09:30am – 17:30pm each day. All visits to Santa remain free of charge, and no booking is required.
