SIX fantastic good causes are hoping charity begins at home as they join together for the Give Local Oldham campaign.

Action Oldham Fund, Dr Kershaw’s Hospice, Kingfisher Special School, Maggie’s Oldham, Mahdlo Youth Zone and Oldham Coliseum Theatre, are collaborating this festive season in a campaign to raise money that will help improve the lives of people across the borough.

The six charities will be fundraising with a series of bucket collections and raffles while also spreading the word in the community about the difference each organisation makes in Oldham

And, thanks to the generosity of Sir Norman Stoller, all money raised for Give Local Oldham will be doubled by The Stoller Charitable Trust and split equally between each charity.

As part of the campaign, The Oldham Times will be featuring stories from each of the six charities and detailing how they support Oldham and its communities.

Oldham Coliseum Theatre is a cultural and educational charity that works with over 150,000 individuals per year.

The Coliseum has a rich history in Greater Manchester dating back to 1885.

It provides a wide variety of distinctive theatre performances and participatory activities for people from all communities in Oldham, Greater Manchester and beyond.

It creates eight original productions each year, of which up to half are newly-commissioned works, which are presented at the Coliseum and on tour.

Intrinsic to the town’s on-going regeneration, the theatre works with its local communities and young people to develop creative programmes to facilitate learning, engagement and community cohesion.

As part of the Give Local Oldham campaign Oldham Coliseum Theatre will host bucket collections throughout the run of this year’s pantomime, Dick Whittington

Kevin Shaw, Chief Executive & Artistic Director, Oldham Coliseum Theatre said: “Give Local is a fantastic opportunity to showcase six wonderful charities that truly benefit, and continue to change the lives of the people of Oldham.

"We’re proud to join in the fun and help to raise awareness and we hope you’ll join us in helping to change the future of our town.”

As part of their community work, the Coliseum’s Learning and Engagement team provides yearlong drama sessions, twice a week, at Mahdlo.

Through the sessions Mahdlo’s members learn new skills and explore different techniques, create and devise their own piece of theatre and perform on the theatre’s stage.

These fun-filled workshops are a fantastic opportunity for anyone interested in theatre and drama to work with professional theatre practitioners and perform on a historic stage which has hosted stars including Dora Bryan, Ralph Finnes, Dame Thora Hird and Anne Kirkbride.

The theatre also regularly offers tickets to Mahdlo’s members for its award-winning productions and nationally renowned annual pantomime