Leading Welsh children’s charity celebrates 20th anniversary

TGP Cymru, the leading Wales based Children’s Rights Charity, will be celebrating its 20th anniversary at the Sparks Innovation and Research Centre at Cardiff University on Monday (17 October).

TGP Cymru was set up when The Children’s Society decided to end operations in Wales in November 2001.

The Children’s Society employed over 120 members of staff and provided services across Wales, including advocacy to looked after children, family group conferencing, Family Centres and intensive intervention for teenagers experiencing trauma and who were at risk of placement breakdown and harm.

It announced it was leaving Wales following the Waterhouse Inquiry into abuse in Children’s Homes in 2000 and the setting up of the first Children’s Commissioner for Wales.

One of the reasons the Children’s Society gave for leaving was translating information and providing services in Welsh was “expensive and complicated”.

TGP was officially launched at the National Eisteddfod in St David’s in 2002 by the then Children’s Minister, Jane Hutt.

Shock

Describing the Children’s Society’s departure as “a huge shock”, TGP Cymru CEO Jackie Murphy said: “We were originally called Tros Gynnal and it was a herculean task, and many people thought that it couldn’t be done and wouldn’t last, including me.

“However, here we are 20 years on and thriving.

“We have just moved into the new Cardiff University Research and Innovations Centre which offers us amazing opportunities for the future.”

TGP Cymru now provides services across the whole of Wales to Looked After Children, Unaccompanied Asylum seeking and Refugee children, Gypsy Roma and Traveller Communities.

It also works restoratively with families, including a specialist service for families of veterans, and provides homeless support to young people.

Julie Morgan the now Deputy Minister for Social Services was an MP at the time the charity was established and along with Jane Hutt and Anne Jones AM’s, was instrumental in setting up the new Charity.

The Deputy Minister will also be speaking at the event and helping the charity celebrate the milestone.

You can find out more about TGP Cymru’s work here.