Easter Chick Appeal raises a bumper £92,000 for Francis House

Francis House is celebrating another incredibly successful year for its much-loved Easter Chick Appeal.

Rachel Nasiri tips a large bag of knitted chicks on the floor next to Maria Dunbobbin sat surrounded by knitted chicks and bunnies

Supporters across Greater Manchester and the wider UK helped to raise over £92,000 towards the care and support provided by the hospice to the families of children and young people with life-shortening or life-threatening conditions.

This spring, a staggering 32,714 knitted chicks and bunnies arrived at the hospice, each one lovingly handmade and ready to be paired with one of the 33,880 Creme Eggs donated by schools, businesses and community groups.

A growing brood of knitters

More than 600 individuals and knitting groups took part in this year’s charity knitting appeal, sending creations from across the country and overseas.

Among the standout contributors was Cheadle resident knitter Maria Dunbobbin, who knitted an astonishing 1,200 chicks.

The Forget‑Me‑Knits group, based at Uplift Café in Stretford, also sent in 185 chicks and continued knitting throughout the appeal, selling additional chicks themselves to raise a further £600 for Francis House.

Woman wearing a pink jumper knitting sat on the floor surrounded by thousands of colourful knitted chicks — Chick contributor Maria Dunbobbin.

“Our Easter Chick Appeal continues to amaze us every year. The creativity, generosity and sheer dedication of our knitters, schools, volunteers and businesses is extraordinary. Every chick sold helps us provide vital care and support to families who rely on Francis House, and we are grateful to everyone who played a part in this year’s success. Thank you all so much!”
Rachel Nasiri, fundraising and digital marketing officer

Volunteer chick army

Champion home stuffer, Jasmine Stagg, generously gave up hours of her time to count and stuff approximately 2,500 chicks ready to be delivered to supporters across Manchester.

Barbara Allwood and Joan Thrussell gave up their free time, helping to open hundreds of parcels received at the hospice. Each brood of chicks received, no matter how big or small, were manually checked in by the team and their dedicated volunteers.

The pair meticulously check that each chick, bunny and even knitted lambs, had eyes and beaks and could hold a Creme Egg securely. Any needing a little TLC were referred to ‘chick hospital’ for some extra care.

“It is a privilege and enormous fun to be involved in such a wonderful enterprise, where hundreds of kind and talented people all gave their time in such an important cause. Every parcel we opened represented someone’s care and generosity, it was great to see such positivity,” said Barbara and Joan.

Woman sat on the floor with boxes full of colourful knitted chicks

Two women holding boxes of knitted chicks sat behind a table

Schools leading the way

A record-breaking 101 schools across Greater Manchester took part in the 2026 appeal, donating Creme Eggs or selling knitted chicks.

St Richard’s RC Primary School in Longsight donated 1,623 Creme Eggs and raised £974 through chick sales.
St Winifred’s RC Primary School in Stockport topped the fundraising leaderboard with £1,648 raised.
St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School in Altrincham was close behind with an impressive £1,446.

Children in school uniform pose with giant knitted chicks amongst boxes full of Creme Eggs — Pupils from St Richard’s RC Primary School in Longsight

Broods of businesses back the appeal

Local businesses also played a key role, including Equilibrium Financial Planning LLP, whose team dedicated their day on a chick‑stuffing session at Towers Business Park.

Sarah Hammond, Head of Best Practice at Equilibrium Financial Planning LLP said: “It’s nice to give something back to the community as Francis House is a charity local to us. Our purpose is making people’s lives better through our work, so it’s lovely to be able to give something voluntary to such a well‑loved cause.”

Three women sat around a large table in an office stuffing creme eggs into knitted chicks — Equilibrium Financial Planning lend a hand with stuffing chicks

“I’ve been blown away by the kindness and creativity shown by everyone involved. It’s a joy to see how much love people pour into this appeal and I’m incredibly proud to be part of it.”
Laura Birch, fundraising officer

A new ‘Chief Chick’ in the coop

This year also marked the first appeal overseen by newly appointed ‘Chief Chick’, Laura Birch. Laura will be taking over from Rachel Nasiri, who has led on and developed the appeal for the last 12 years.

The Easter Chick Appeal continues to be one of Francis House’s most popular and community‑driven fundraisers. Every chick sold helps support the hospice’s work providing a range of services including respite care, homecare, sibling support, emotional support, end of life care and bereavement support to families facing the most challenging of times.

The total running cost of Francis House per year is £5.8 million. Out of every £1 spent 94p goes towards charitable work.

While this year’s appeal may be over, knitting needles are always at the ready! The hospice will happily accept knitted chicks, bunnies and lambs all year round. For more information on ways to get involved visit Easter Chick Appeal.