The Sick Children’s Trust’s ‘Home from Home’ Eckersley House, which gives families with seriously ill children at Leeds Children’s Hospital a warm and comfortable place to stay just minutes from their child’s bedside, has received a grant of £19,983 from players of People’s Postcode Lottery which will go towards continuing its vital work in Leeds.
Eckersley House has been supporting families with children at Leeds Children’s Hospital for 27 years, giving them a place to stay, free of charge, just a stone’s throw away from their child’s hospital bedside. The support is from People’s Postcode Trust, a grant giving charity funded by the lottery players, and will go towards the running of Eckersley House. Eckersley House Manager, Jane McHale, said:
“Everyone at The Sick Children’s Trust is delighted to be awarded such a large amount from the People’s Postcode Trust. As a charity we rely entirely on voluntary donations to keep our ‘Homes from Home’ open and running, supporting thousands of families each year. The funding will go a long way towards keeping families together while their child is sick in hospital, and ensuring our doors stay open during the global pandemic.
“We would like to say a huge, heartfelt thank you to every single player of People’s Postcode Lottery, as without you this wouldn’t be possible.”
The Sick Children’s Trust runs ten ‘Homes from Home’ across the country offering families with a sick child in hospital a warm and comfortable place to stay near to their child’s bedside. Due to the cancellation of fundraising events and activities across the country, the charity expects to lose 25-30% of its income this year and needs to raise £2.2million in order to keep its houses running to support families like Catherine Firth’s.
Catherine’s daughter, Ruby, was diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis and needed surgery to straighten her spine at Leeds Children’s Hospital, an hour away from the family’s home in Holmfirth. Fortunately, on the day of her surgery a room became available at Eckersley House which meant Catherine had a place to wait while Ruby was in theatre for nine hours, could be there for her daughter as soon as she woke up and throughout her recovery. Catherine said:
“I cannot describe the relief and gratitude at having somewhere to go. Knowing that we had somewhere to sleep, be there by Ruby’s side at a moment’s notice, and a chance to shower made an incredible difference to our well-being.
“Before we found out about The Sick Children’s Trust, trying to plan who would be with Ruby, and when, was a logistical nightmare. We knew someone had to be with her, but we needed to work out how we would travel back and forth to the hospital from Holmfirth, several times a day, to make sure her little sister, Katrina, was looked after too. It would’ve been so much harder without having a place to stay at Eckersley House.”
People’s Postcode Trust is a grant-giving charity funded entirely by players of People’s Postcode Lottery. To find out more about the People’s Postcode Trust visit www.postcodetrust.org.uk and for information about the People Postcode Lottery visit www.postcodelottery.co.uk.
For further information about The Sick Children’s Trust and how you can help the charity, visit www.sickchildrenstrust.org
