Founded in 1869 by Reverend Thomas Bowman Stephenson, a Methodist minister who found children sleeping rough beneath the arches of Waterloo Station, Action for Children began as the National Children’s Home, a single shelter offering food and safety to two boys, Fred and George.

The charity was renamed NCH Action for Children in 1994, and simplified to Action for Children in 2008, but its founding purpose has never changed.

Its mission is to protect and support children and young people, working with those who need it most.

Today, Action for Children runs more than 340 local services across the UK, from schools and children’s centres to online support, reaching over 550,000 children, young people and families a year, tackling issues from poverty and neglect to mental health and exploitation.

But its work goes beyond direct services.

Action for Children also campaigns for the policy changes that could prevent children reaching crisis point in the first place, pressing government on child poverty and the funding of children’s services.

Its vision is ultimately about something much bigger than any single service: a country where every child and young person is safe, happy, healthy and able to thrive.

This matters as the pressures facing families continue to grow, from the cost of living to a stretched care system. Protecting children properly means moving beyond crisis response alone and asking a more important question:

What would it take to reach a child before they fall through the cracks, not after?

At 30 for 30, we are proud to celebrate a charity that has spent more than 150 years answering exactly that question.

Today, we celebrate Action for Children, and everyone working in the service of the children who need us most.

Find out more about Action for Children at www.actionforchildren.org.uk