The count is in: ELBA’s 2020 Toy Appeal was the biggest ever, with over 22,000 toys donated – that’s more than double the previous record. From that amazing total, over 2,200 toys went to Islington organisations who work with local families.

In the run up to Christmas, volunteers wrote cards and letters to vulnerable people feeling lonely and/or isolated.

During a “normal” year, Christmas can be an especially lonely time for many people. Amid a pandemic involving lockdowns and limited social contact, their experiences of loneliness and isolation are understandably more profound.