Donations to the Guardian and Observer charity appeal in aid of refugee children have passed the £1.5m mark, with five days of the campaign still to go.

The money will go to three charities working with young refugees and migrants based in the UK, other European countries, Syria and Lebanon: Help Refugees, Safe Passage and the Children’s Society.

Between them the charities provide a range of support, from supplying emergency aid to refugee camps to enabling unaccompanied refugee children to find legal sanctuary with relatives in the UK and providing essential support to help youngsters adapt to life in Britain.

More than 15,000 readers have donated over the past three and a half weeks, making it the second biggest charity appeal in the papers’ history. The appeal closes at 5pm on Sunday 8 January.

The 2015 appeal, in support of six refugee charities, raised £2.6m. The previous highest amount raised was £1.4m in 2004 in the wake of the tsunami disaster.

Matthew Reed, chief executive of the Children’s Society, said: “The generosity of the Guardian and Observer readers has been overwhelming. £1.5m is an incredible amount and we are extremely grateful for every single penny donated. The money raised will make a huge difference to the lives of the child and young refugees we work with, helping them to rebuild their lives here in the UK.”

Dani Lawrence of Help Refugees said: “As the country goes back to work at the start of the new year, the news of the incredible generosity of Guardian and Observer readers towards refugee children gives us hope for a much more compassionate 2017 and will help to provide respite from the remaining winter months.”



Neil Jameson, executive director of Citizens UK, which oversees Safe Passage, said: “We are so honoured that readers of the Guardian and Observer have been moved to donate. So thrilled to have been chosen as one of charities to benefit from the appeal. So grateful to the many Guardian and Observer journalists who have supported the appeal through the articles they have written, the telethon and all the work that has gone on behind the scenes.

“Thank you to everyone who has helped us to help child refugees.”