The volunteers baking birthday cakes for children

Volunteer bakers are paying out of their own pockets so children in need do not go without a cake on their birthdays.

Free Cakes for Kids Fareham and Gosport buys the ingredients, bakes and delivers cakes for young people whose families are unable to provide one.

Natalie Parker, who joined as a baker while on maternity leave in 2024 and now runs the group, said the thought of a child not having a birthday cake was "heart-breaking".

The group, part of a national network, said demand had risen and it was on the hunt for more volunteers.

Parker said she had seen the group advertised on Facebook and had thought about joining for a while.

"I was on maternity leave with my son and just wanted something to occupy my brain a bit, so I took the plunge," she told BBC Radio Solent.

She said her own son sometimes struggled to understand why other children would go without.

"I can't imagine my own son not having a birthday cake. When I'm baking them, he says to me, 'Why don't they?' He can't, as a child, see why," she said.

The group does not deal directly with families. Referrals come through organisations like food banks, churches and schools.

Requests are posted in a private Facebook group where volunteers can take them on, often tailoring cakes to a child's favourite characters or interests.

The volunteers buy the ingredients, bake the cakes and deliver them, with the group only able to provide toppers, boards and boxes when it has managed to raise money.

"It's not cheap, especially with food costs going up," Parker said.

"But it's a small price, for me and I know for our volunteers, to pay for that child getting a birthday cake that they otherwise wouldn't be able to have."

The group has more than 30 bakers, ranging from home bakers who make one or two cakes a year to professionals with their own baking businesses.

"You don't need to be an incredible baker to join us," Parker added.