The Independent's Christmas Appeal

We are delighted to have been selected as one of the charities that benefitted from The Independent's Christmas Appeal. The appeal supported vulnerable children here in the UK and abroad.

In addition to the general appeal, which concluded in early January, The Independent ran a dazzling collection of more than two dozen auctions on eBay in December.

Children's stories

During the 2011 Christmas season, The Independent featured stories about young people and their families who we have worked with as part of our Make Runaways Safe campaign.

Stories that appeared include:

• 'A lesson in understanding- the former runaway bringing two worlds together': A project helps social workers decode youth culture. (4 January)
• 'It's not just girls who fall victim to abuse online': Our pioneering project helps victims of paedophiles and highlights a neglected threat to boys. (30 December)
• 'The project that could prevent another Charlene Downes from disappearing': Our innovative scheme helps locate teenagers who have run away from home. (27 December)
• A ray of hope for thousands of children with nowhere to go: We offer children a sanctuary. (23 December)
• 'He would always want to do sexual things': Our projects to teach young people about online safety has helped a young person come to terms with the abuse she suffered. (17 December)
• 'The boy who was saved from the bullies'. With an increase in the number of young runaways, our projects help children like Mark. (14 December)
• 'When your child runs away... it is the not knowing. No one could help. I felt trapped': One of our projects offered influential support to Shelbie and her mother. (9 December)
• Runaway success: At 14, Dortothy left home. She tells The Independent how The Children's Society changed her life. (6 December)

Donations to this year's Christmas Appeal helped us continue to have a positive effect on young people's lives. In addition to The Children's Society, your donations supported work by Save the Children and the Rainbow Trust.

Visit Coronation Street, dine with Joanna Lumley and other exclusive lots

Items auctioned included services from The Independent's writers and 'money can't buy' opportunities to meet celebrity supporters, including:

• guided tours of New York, Somme battlefields and London Fashion Week
• a private tea with Private Eye magazine
• tickets to a production of Legally Blonde in London, and the chance to meet its star, Carley Stenson for a drink and a chat
• a morning and lunch with restauranteur Mark Hix at his Soho eaterie
• meals with several key people from The Independent, ranging from a meal with the editor, to lunch at Westminster with the political editor, to a meal at a five-star restaurant with the newspaper's food critic

Learn more about The Independent's Christmas Appeal.