Over the festive period, The Theatre by the Lake (TBTL) stepped in to help families facing hardship by providing an unforgettable theatrical experience.

Via their Give the Gift of Theatre fundraising campaign, they successfully managed to raise £17,423.54 and enabled 250 individuals to attend a performance of A Little Princess.

Drawing on the success of their Christmas campaign, TBTL will now be launching Give the Gift of Theatre as a year-round initiative.

TBTL collaborated closely with Public Health Cumbria to pick those families that would most benefit from the support.

Along with Rotary Club of Cockermouth they fundraised to provide families with free tickets and transportation to the theatre where the show was being staged.

Behind the success of the campaign were TBTL's solid business supporters: David Allen IT, CRS Facilities Management, Muckles LLP, and UK Global Broking Group.

With their backing, the campaign achieved a scale that would otherwise not have been possible.

A spokesperson for the West Cumbria Refugee Support Network, who brought a group to see the show, said: "I just want to let you know that two of our resettled refugee families who went to the show at Theatre by the Lake absolutely loved it!

"One Afghan man, who went with his wife and two children, said 'it was a really unique experience for all of us'.

"An Afghan woman told me she understood the central meaning of the story - that you must never give up, even when things seem hopeless, because people will show kindness and offer you help when you least expect it.

"That definitely struck a chord for her."

Artistic Director of TBTL, Liz Stevenson, when discussing their success and future plans, said: "Christmas is all about making memories as a family, ones that will be cherished for a lifetime.

"We were able to make this happen with support from our great community here in Cumbria.

"With the year-round campaign, we'll be able to support more families and individuals across Cumbria to experience the joy of live theatre and create those lasting memories."

The Give the Gift of Theatre initiative will continue to offer tickets to those facing financial difficulties all year round.

It also plans to continue to improve its accessibility with British Sign Language, captioned, audio described and relaxed performances, while also heavily discounting tickets for schools.

This is in an effort to allow more young people to have access to art and culture in Cumbria.