Beresfords has donated over £400 worth of equipment to First Step, a charity providing support and a place to learn for pre-school children with special needs and their families in The London Borough of Havering.

The donated equipment includes hand crafted chairs specially designed for toddlers, mobile storage units and storage trays, all of which were requested by the charity.
 
Paul Beresford, Chairman and Managing Director, of Beresfords commented: “We have sponsored First Step for a number of years and are keen to continue our link with such a worthwhile charity. As a local estate agent we are always looking at ways to give back to the community as a means of saying thank you for the support they have given us since we began operating over 40 years ago.”
 
Mary Lamb, Senior Playleader, from First Step stated: “We are very grateful to Beresfords for their continued support of First Step.  Their recent donation enabled us to purchase some essential equipment for our new Tuesday and Thursday P.A.C.C sessions, (Promoting Attention, Communication and Co-operation).  This group is especially for very young children with social communication difficulties or autism. Without financial contributions from supporters, First Step would not be able to continue to provide our services to families of pre-school children with special needs and/or disabilities in Havering”.
 
First Step began in November 1988 in response to a plea from parents of young children with special needs. The group, then known as First Step Opportunity Playgroup, began with six children and their mothers who met on one morning per week at a small hall in Upminster Methodist Church. The numbers soon grew and within a year the group were searching for new premises to facilitate a small playgroup as well as the parent/child session.  A room was found at Nelmes School in Hornchurch where it was decided to hold a meeting to advertise the benefits of Music Therapy. The meeting was very well attended and a great deal of interest was manifested. As a direct result the charity were offered the finance to employ two Music Therapists. Since that day Music Therapy has been an integral part of First Step and has played an important role in the development of many children passing through. A new base was needed to allow the provision to grow and Dunningford School in Elm Park was appointed as the new home. Once again the charity continued to grow and after two years of fundraising, with a total of £1.2million being made, First Step moved to Hornchurch.
 
For further information on First Step visit www.firststep.org.uk.