A charity with a base in Mansfield smashed its £25,000 fundraising target.

The Not Lonely This Christmas appeal, run by Reach Learning Disability, featured a week of special events and online donations.

Part of the Big Give Christmas Challenge, it aimed to raise money to help Reach’s activities and courses as well as awareness of the problems faced by people with learning disabilities such as loneliness at Christmas.

Donations made online during the Christmas Challenge week were doubled by a Big Give pledge — the UK’s largest match-funding campaign.

The money raised will fund activities and courses that help people with learning disabilities build their confidence, make new friends and feel part of their community.

Throughout the challenge week, Reach held events and open-house sessions to raise awareness and funds for the campaign.

They included the annual Reach Mansfield Charity Christmas Auction at the St John’s Centre, where around 30 lots — including food hampers and luxury items — were auctioned to raise funds for the appeal.

Reach Mansfield also held a raffle as part of the event, raising a total of £950.

Individual donations plus funds from events run across the Reach bases in Mansfield, Southwell and Newark during the challenge meant the charity reached its £25,000 target within the week.

A spokesman for the charity said: “Reach would like to thank all those who supported the Big Give Christmas Challenge, including the volunteers who helped make their events in Mansfield, Newark and Southwell such a success.”