DEDICATED volunteers from Thornbury helped residents of a Bulgarian institution to celebrate Christmas on a visit to the Eastern European country.

Holding Out Hope volunteers Pete Brady, Tracy Robbins, Harry Coleman and Emily Brady visited the Samuil institution and spent three days making sure the people living there were not forgotten this Christmas.

Using fundraised money and donations the volunteers bought both basic necessities and Christmas treats for the residents.

Samuil institution is a huge concrete building which houses up to 100 adults with learning disabilities. These residents live in very basic conditions, with no possessions of their own.

The institution draws comparisons to a prison with residents being put in rooms for control with padlocks on doors and gates.

On this recent trip the volunteers took residents out from the institution on trips, taking many of them to the hairdressers, shopping for clothes, coffee and pizza meals at a local restaurant.

The charity provided a party for those people unable to go out from Samuil and also bought party bags for every resident of two smaller community-based care homes, which was really appreciated by the residents.

The charity is working in partnership with Amnesty International to try and get the institution closed and the residents housed in small group homes locally. A report has been produced with Amnesty from their inspection in November.

Tracy Robbins said: “Holding Out Hope is the only charity that support the Samuil Institution and without this support these vulnerable adults would just exist from day to day in an environment that is bleak, where there is much neglect and bullying is rife.

“As a charity, we feel that our input gives them some hope in that they haven’t been totally forgotten by the outside world, we offer them practical support and provide some necessities that their funding doesn’t cover and the opportunity to get out of the institution and access the community.

Pete Brady, chairman and founder of the charity has been a frequent visitor for many years, along with various volunteers and there is a good relationship and recognition between him and many of the residents.

For more information or to volunteer with the Charity, call Pete on 07514676484. If you would like to make a donation, visit www.holdingouthope.co.uk and the just giving page.