As it enters its final weekend, the Guardian and Observer charity appeal 2020 has so far raised more than £1,250,000 for three charities working to support young people in communities badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. With two full days still to go,more than 13,000 readers have donated to the appeal since it launched in December. The funds raised will be shared among the charities UK Youth, YoungMinds and Child Poverty Action Group. Readers can still donate online or by phone, with the donation webpage open until midnight on Sunday 10 January. The money raised will benefit grassroots youth work projects, initiatives to provide emotional support for young people and improve young people’s mental health services, and innovative work to reduce child poverty in the UK. “It is absolutely incredible that Guardian and Observer readers have shown such generosity,” said Lizzie Walmsley, the director of engagement at UK Youth. “Young people need to know that we still believe in their future and readers could not have demonstrated that compassion more clearly. Thank you to everyone who has donated.” The chief executive of Child Poverty Action Group, Alison Garnham, said: “It is truly uplifting to see this huge wave of support for children and young people. Your donations are a ray of hope for children in low-income families and a welcome sign that in tough times their needs do not go unnoticed. Child poverty can be eradicated. With your help we will be working hard this year to make that happen.” Emma Thomas, the chief executive of YoungMinds, said: “We cannot thank Guardian and Observer readers enough for showing support for young people’s mental health at such a difficult time. The money raised will help us show young people that they are not alone with their mental health and we will continue to strive towards a world where no young person reaches crisis point.” Introducing the appeal this month, the Guardian’s editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner, wrote: “By putting young people at the heart of this year’s Guardian and Observer charity appeal, we signal our support for the generation we hope will flourish after Covid. Today’s young people must not become a lost generation.”