Emma and Matt Willis reveal how they are teaching their kids the important lesson of kindness
Emma and Matt Willis have shared that they are trying to instill the importance of helping others in their children by leading by example.
On Monday they along with Martin Kemp, helped launch charity Social Bite’s Festival of Kindess online and in five cities across the UK including London, to help the homeless this Christmas.
The charity is urging people to buy an extra gift this year which will be donated to those who are most in need, and can either be done online or at their donation point installed at Charing Cross Station in front of a specially errected 28ft tall Christmas tree.
The Voice Kids host, 46, and her former Busted musician husband, 39, are proud parents to Isabelle, 13, Ace, 11, and six-year-old Trixie and say they regularly encourage them to help those less fortunate than them.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Emma said: “We do this every year actually before Christmas we go through all of [our kids’] stuff and we try and take as much of it from them that we can to pass on. We’re trying to explain to them at a young age how things like that really do help.
“A lot of people get quite focused on Christmas and gifts and family, but there are so many people out there that desperately need things. Like cost-of-living crisis is going to affect so many people so donating money isn’t as easy as it once was, but hopefully there are a portion of people in this country that will have something in their wardrobe or in a cupboard that they can dig out and pass on to people that really need it.”
Matt’s association with Social Bite founder Josh Littlejohn MBE dates back to December 2019 when he took part in Mr Littlejohn’s The World’s Big Sleep Out initiative.
This saw him bed down in Trafalagar Square for the night joined by the likes of Giovanna Fletcher, Cherry Healy, Jamelia, Anita Rani, Julie Etchingham and many more.
Dame Helen Mirren even read a bedtime story to those those taking part.
More recently, Matt helped launch Social Bite’s first London-based coffee shop in Covent Garden.
Social Bite, which also has five coffee shops running across three cities in Scotland, aims for one in four of their staff to come from a background of homelessness
The coffee shop’s Pay-It-Forward system allows customers who are buying items for themselves to purchase an additional meal or hot drink in advance for someone who is homeless to claim later.
Their Edinburgh cafe has previously received visits from Hollywood stars including Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney.
He said: “Their cafe was great idea, this is just like an extension of it and an amazing way for people to give and know that it’s going to a really important place. I think with some charities – you know, don’t get me wrong, charity is amazing, but sometimes I think you give something and you don’t know where that’s going. I think once you’re giving something and know exactly where that’s going, it will encourage more people to give.”
Social Bite’s Festival of Kindness is helping homeless and vulnerable people through the cost-of-living crisis this Christmas. To help Social Bite in providing meals, gifts, packs of essential items, and emergency accommodation with support to people in need, you can donate a ‘Christmas of Kindness’ by visiting www.social-bite.co.uk/festival-of-kindness/donate-a-christmas-of-kindness/.
