VOLUNTEERS and supporters of the Swindon and North Wiltshire branch of the NSPCC were celebrated at a special ceremony at Supermarine earlier this week.

It was an eventful evening that cheered the progress the branch has made and emphasised the importance of the work it does with young people who have experienced abuse.

Alan Fletcher marked the 25th anniversary of Swindon Business Cares for Children, which has loyally supported the charity and raised more than £800,000 over the years.

Outgoing chairman Ian Underwood gave his last address as the head of the branch, then Marilyn Kempshall stepped into the role.

Volunteers from Swindon's NSPCC centre gave an emotional talk about how they helped a family who'd been affected by substance abuse and a child who had been sexually abused.

Harriett Knowles is one of those volunteers.

Before the talk, she said: "A lot of the work we do is play-based and we work on recovery.

"We work with the parents as well to help them help their child.

"It has its challenges and there might be difficult things to talk about, but at the end of the day it's all about putting the child's needs at the forefront."

Awards were also presented to those who had made an extra effort in their volunteering and service to the charity.

Mayor Maureen Penny, Police and Crime Commissioner Angus Macpherson, and other special guests received a tour of the new Supermarine facilities before the presentations began.

Staff from O2's Swindon store explained what measures are in place to help keep children safe online.

NSPCC senior consultant Liza Ware looked at how child protection in sport has become an increasingly prominent concern as more coaches have been convicted of historic sex offences against children they taught.

Rosey Stonehouse gave a moving account of how she went from a teenager who contacted ChildLine out of desperation, to volunteering regularly as a counsellor at the service to help others who used to be in her situation.

Caroline Morgan, NSPCC community fundraising manager for Wiltshire, said: "Every couple of years we try to get everyone together to celebrate our work and remind ourselves of why we do it."

A massive 90 per cent of the NSPCC's income is raised through voluntary donations, like Thanes Water's £1,450 donation which the team presented to the charity that night.