Cardiff and Vale College students get crafty to raise money for Llandough Hospital

Students from Cardiff and Vale College have raised £250 for Llandough Hospital’s Breast Care Unit by making craft items and selling them at the Christmas Market on the Hayes in Cardiff.

The CAVC Heart Pillow Project, supported by the College’s Be Epic enrichment team, brought students with additional learning needs to work shifts at a stall in the Hayes.

The Heart Pillow Project is the brainchild of CAVC Fashion students, and is an ongoing scheme that started in 2013 and is taken up by incoming students each year. The students make heart-shaped pillows which can be tucked under the arm to ease pain for people who have been operated on for breast cancer to raise money for cancer treatment charities.

Students across the College’s Independent Living Skills (ILS) course for people with additional learning needs worked to produce a range of handmade Christmas decorations to sell alongside the heart pillows. The learners worked shifts from 10am-5.30pm throughout the week they were at the Market.

ILS learner Jed Smith, 19 and from Cardiff, said: “Working here has been good – it’s really nice to sell our products to help a cancer charity. One lady earlier bough some of our products and then donated £5 to the charity and that was really, really lovely.”

Fellow ILS student Mackenzie Webber, also 19 and from Cardiff, added: “I think it’s great to help out the charity and it’s been good working here today.”