Wish Wiki

Wish Capture is the first official stage of the Wish Journey, and one of the most important!

During Wish Capture, we give children full creative control with the power to shape their entire Wish Journey. The aim is to get to the heart of a child's wish, so we can design and bring the most amazing wish to life, just as they've imagined it.

Wish Capture sets the scene for the entire Wish Journey, so it's important not to rush.

Wish Capture is followed by Wish Design, Wish Anticipation, Wish Realisation and Wish Effect.

The Wish Capture Visit is the first official meet and greet between your child and their Wish team. It's where we really start to get to know your child, and listen to their wish ideas.

Our expert Wish teams know a thing or two about wish making, and your Wish Catcher is usually an experienced, local volunteer trained in wish granting (as well as child safeguarding). Sometimes, your Wish Catchers will hail from Wish HQ.

Wish Capture Visits are held either online or outdoors at home or in hospital.

At Make-A-Wish, our mission is to grant the wish of every eligible child. We believe a wish should be limitless, which is why we encourage our kids to think big during Wish Capture, starting with the question: “If you could wish for anything, what would it be?”

We want to spark children's imagination, encourage them to dream, and think big - not to be limited by expectations of what is possible. Whether it's a wish to go to the moon or captain the Australian cricket team – more often than not, we can find a way to make it happen.

If you’re looking for inspiration, then look no further than some of the amazing wishes we’ve granted to date.

As a charitable organisation, we do have budget considerations when it comes to delivery, to ensure the financial sustainability and continuity of our mission.

Given child safeguarding and our guiding Wish-Granting Principles, certain exclusions may apply (and change from time to time):

• Make-A-Wish Australia does not currently grant international travel wishes, pools, spas, cars, quad-bikes, landscaping, structural renovations, electrical works, medical equipment or formal educational assistance. Please note this list is not exhaustive.
• All wishes follow our child-safeguarding policy requirements and will be delivered in line with any restrictions, laws or guidelines in your local area.

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all budget for each child’s wish, as wish costs can vary greatly. Some wishes are relatively simple and easy to organise, while other wishes are more elaborate with lots of moving parts!

As a community-funded charity, we encourage community support and participation, which means some wish goods or services may be donated. Whenever possible, Make-A-Wish seeks in-kind donations and the support of partners to help keep the cost of wishes down, while always focusing on the quality (and safety) of the wish.

While we would love to give a simple answer, there's no easy way to do this as the length of a Wish Journey depends on so many different things.

For example, it will often depend on what your child wishes for, how challenging or complex that is to deliver, and the timing or availability of all things wish-related. It will also depend on your child's medical treatment, how they’re doing and how it fits in with your family's schedule.

For many wish children (and their families) - planning, thinking and dreaming about the wish can be a welcome distraction. International research shows the excitement and anticipation of looking forward to a wish can lead to increased joy and happiness for children, parents and siblings.

Sometimes children wish for seemingly "simple" things like a bike, computer or puppy. While it sounds relatively straightforward to grant one child’s simple wish, when you’re capturing, designing and delivering more than 800 wishes, it’s a mix of art and science.

In fairness to all the wish kids waiting, we need to factor when each child applied, the nature of their wish, and any medical considerations.

We will always do our best to weave our magic, and work closely with partners who can literally help us make the impossible possible from time to time.

Thank you for your understanding.

Yes, of course. We understand that life gets busy for our families, especially in the middle of treatment.

If you're not ready to participate in Wish Capture activities or need to press pause, just let us know.

You can request for your child's wish to be put on hold for up to 12 months during Wish Capture.

During the Wish Design and Anticipation stages, we will keep in touch around dates and other details.

During the Wish Capture stage, kids often move through lots of different ideas before landing their one true wish, and this is totally normal!

Once your child lands on their wish and we have your tick of approval (at the end of Wish Design stage), we start locking in suppliers and other details, which means big changes can get tricky after this point.

Our goal is to ensure the wish we create is most amazing wish for your child, so if your child is ever unsure, please contact your Wish team. We're here to help.