The first year Cath Finn set up a Santa’s grotto, it was in a ginnel. She set up four polytunnels in the narrow alley, and as a festive wind swept through, the buildings on either side were a shield. “We were lucky because most other stands got blown away that year,” she says.
It’s a far cry from the setup now. With an inflatable grotto this Christmas, Finn and her team at Youth Matters, an organisation in the Derbyshire town of New Mills, are gearing up to take it to two towns, a school and different youth clubs. As many as 250 children will pass through the grotto each day. “Have grotto, will travel,” says Finn, who once upon a time worked for Big Issue.
“We just try and do as much as we can to make it as fun and magical as possible for the children,” Finn says. “We are the only youth organisation around where we are”.
Youth Matters is one of those organisations who do a bit of everything in their community. The grotto sits alongside a holiday club where children at risk of food poverty come for activities and a hot meal, the distribution of food hampers and slow cookers to families, and a toy and gift collection for local children.
But none of those see Finn and her team dressing up as elves. The grotto does.
Their Santa turns 81 this month, and has just invested in a new wig and beard. Parents enjoy the inappropriate jokes and kids get a book. Last year, the prep meant wrapping up 600 books. “That’s the worst part of it, wrapping them all,” says Finn.
