A Sutton Scotney charity has raised tens of thousands of pounds to support the children in their care with the help of celebrities and Test Valley residents.

Naomi’s House and Jacksplace organised ‘Game On!’, an online gaming event where participants complete gaming marathons and set themselves challenges with forefeits, such as shaving their head. This year, actor James Buckley, known for his work in The Inbetweeners and Doctor Who, and comedian Glenn Moore joined in with the challenge.

Having set a target of £5,000, the charity ended up with over £17,500 once the weekend event was over.

Connor Phillips, event organiser at Naomi House & Jacksplace, said the charity was “blow away by the generosity of the online gaming community.”

Naomi’s House and Jacksplace provides respite, emergency and end of life care to life-limited and life-threatened children, young adults and their families from across Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, Berkshire, West Sussex, Surrey and the Isle of Wight.

‘Game On!’ has been run for the past three years by the charity, with participants encouraged to do whatever virtual gaming challenge they like to raise money and have fun. Some take part in forfeits as part of the weekend event, such as putting on fancy dress or shaving their head.

This year’s event took place between March 26 and March 28, with the charity setting a goal of £5,000 to be raised. This sum of money pays for over 200 hours of care at their hospices.

They were supported by celebrity patrons James Buckley, Glenn Moore and Twitch streamer Sheila as part of their fundraising endeavour. This paid dividends for the charity, with James raising £6,840 on his stream alone.

In total, fundraising made over £17,500, which is more than the event has raised in the previous two years combined.

Connor said: “Everyone at Naomi House & Jacksplace has been blown away by the generosity of the online gaming community.

“We have been so grateful for not only James, Glenn and Sheila’s support but all of our fantastic participants.

“The donations make such a huge difference to our hospices and enables our charity to care for life-limited children, young adults and families.

“We cannot thank you all enough and hope to see you back at next year’s Game On!’’

To learn more about, and donate to, Naomi's House, click here: https://www.naomihouse.org.uk/