The charity, which works to raise much-needed funds for a range of life-saving equipment, specialist support staff roles and pioneering research across the Cambridge hospital campus, has managed to raise more than £500,000 so far in its £1 million campaign to transform care for sick children.
The ‘Give for the Moment’ Children’s Campaign will enable:
- Less waiting and more time with clinicians thanks to a new cancer care coordinator
- Better access to supported play in the hospital for children with cancer, and a more child-friendly environment
- Positivity, fun and improving a child’s ability to express feelings thanks to music therapy and interactive sensory play
- Quicker recovery, less scarring and shorter stays in hospital for children requiring surgery due to less invasive methods
- Additional help for siblings and parents to cope with bereavement.
Speaking on behalf of Addenbrooke’s, Rob Heuschkel, Director of Children’s services (pictured second left with the team), said: “Our fantastic NHS staff do everything they possibly can to minimise the distress for young patients and their families. But while the staff work tirelessly to ensure that quality of patient care remains world-class, services are unfortunately under a lot of strain and we all know that more can be done. We can only continue to improve things if people support the hospital philanthropically so we urge you to join the campaign. £1 million is an ambitious target but we are already halfway there.”
Rob continues, “ACT’s Give for the Moment Children’s Campaign will allow the charity to fund a number of projects ranging from medical equipment, to staff and play equipment. This will have a transformative effect on the young people who visit our hospital. This vital work can only be done with support from the community.”
Gemma Downham, ACT’s Director of Fundraising added: “Thanks to grateful patients, kind-hearted fundraisers, donors, companies and the wider community we have already reached the midway point in our fundraising but we still need further support to ensure that we are able to fund all the projects identified by hospital staff. As a small charity, we are solely reliant on donations from those in the local community so we are keen to raise awareness for our campaign. We want to make sure that those who have been treated at the hospital are aware of what we are trying to achieve through this campaign and can take this opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie if they’d like to do so.”
This week marks the nationwide Small Charity Week, which runs from 18th to 23rd June. It celebrates and raises awareness of the essential work of the UK’s small charity sector, which make an invaluable contribution to the lives of millions of individuals, communities and causes across the UK and the rest of the world.
To find out more about Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust or to donate to its children’s campaign, please visit: www.act4addenbrookes.org.uk/children or call 01223 217757.