- National Family Week (UK)
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National Family Week (UK) Begins May 30th 2011 Ends June 5th 2011 Frequency Annually Location(s) UK Years active 2 Inaugurated 2009 Most recent 2010 Website http://www.nationalfamilyweek.co.uk National Family Week is an annual event in the UK taking place throughout the Summer half term holiday (England/Wales/Ireland), in late May/early June. The campaign aims to celebrate family life, encourage families to spend more time together and highlights the important role families play in society. The week consists of thousands of local events organised across the UK by supporting organisations including local authorities, sports clubs, charities, community and religious groups. In 2011 the week sees the launch of The National Family Week roadshow which tours the UK's major cities throughout the Summer half term holiday.[1] National Family Week is endorsed by but does not receive funding from the UK government so funding for the initiative comes through commercial sponsorship.
Contents
Organisers
National Family Week was founded in 2009 by Nick Henry of Henley Media Group[2] and is run by Family Week Limited. It mirrors the established Canadian National Family Week which has been established since 1985. Unlike the Canadian week which is funded by taxpayers, the UK week is supported wholly by commercial sponsorship and the support of a large network of local, regional and national organisations with Family Week Ltd co-ordinating the activity .[3]
National Family Week 2009
National Family Week 2009 consisted of over 4,000 events nationwide including a favourite family recipe competition, Family of the Year competition and search to find the next Big Family Idea where the Big Lottery Fund donated £150,000 to go towards turning the winning ideas into a reality.[4][5] 2009 also included a successful Guinness World Record attempt for the largest picnic across multiple venues which was attended by ambassadors Sally Gunnell and Antony Worrall Thompson amongst other celebrities achieving 12,934 participants in 79 venues across the UK. Sponsors of the 2009 campaign included Sainsbury's, Bupa, Vue (cinema), Outwell, Seat and Legoland.
National Family Week 2010
Over 5,000 events took place during National Family Week 2010 and competitions were launched to find the best family photo and most talented family pet. A new Guinness World Record was also set for the largest three-legged race[6] across multiple venues which included Twickenham stadium and the City of Manchester stadium with at total of 1,860 participants at 18 venues across the UK, on 5 June 2010. Sponsors of 2010 included Tesco Mobile, Hasbro, Chrysler and Vue (cinema).
- 2010 Family Survey
UK parents spend on average 49 minutes a day together with their children.[7] Websites such as Facebook have become a major influence in the lives of teenage girls - much more influential than television, magazines, celebrities and even their own brothers and sisters.[8]
Merchandise
Free National Family Week goodie bags are handed out at major events and contain freebies for kids, a voucher booklet and Family Time! magazine. Organisations co-ordinating events under the umbrella of National Family Week are also supplied with free merchandise, balloons, stickers, posters and banners to help promote their events.
Political supporters
- National Family Week is endorsed by many of the UK's high-profile political figures including:
- David Cameron[9]
- Nick Clegg[10]
- Gordon Brown[11]
- Alex Salmond [12]
- Boris Johnson[13]
Celebrity supporters of National Family Week
- Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan
- Jo Frost
- Terry Wogan
- Sally Gunnell
- Antony Worrall Thompson
- Amanda Holden
- Esther Rantzen
- Gillian McKeith
- Joe Swash
- Sian Lloyd
- Pauline Quirke
- Jo Whiley
Supporting organisations
Thousands of local not-for-profit organisations and over 180 national not-for-profit organisations support and get involved with National Family Week.[14]
References
- ^ What's coming in 2011
- ^ www.henleymediagroup.com
- ^ Supporting organisations
- ^ BIG Lottery Fund support of the inaugural National Family Week
- ^ Big Family Idea - Winning Ideas funded by £150,000
- ^ largest three-legged race
- ^ UK Family Survey 2010 - Families spend just 49 minutes per day together
- ^ UK Family Survey 2010 - Facebook dominates the lives of UK teenage girls
- ^ David Cameron's support for National Family Week UK
- ^ Nick Clegg's support for National Family Week UK
- ^ Gordon Brown's support for National Family Week UK
- ^ Alex Salmond's support for National Family Week UK
- ^ Boris Johnson's support for National Family Week UK
- ^ National Family Week - Partners & Supporters
External links
Categories:- Recurring events established in 2009
- Annual events in London
- Organizations established in 2009
- June events
- May events
- Family associations
- Thematic weeks
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