SICK CHILDREN'S TRUST

ECKERSLEY HOUSE is in the grounds of St James's Hospital ("Jimmy's") in Leeds.

As you will see from the "PERSONAL & FAMILY" pages of this website our six-year-old daughter, Bethany, has a liver condition and spent a lot of time at St James' Hospital in Leeds. During this time the SICK CHILDREN'S TRUST provided us with free accommodation in their luxurious "home-from-home", Eckersley House, in the hospital grounds.

The Sick Children's Trust have become our "pet" charity - they receive no government funding and rely on voluntary donations to keep their Homes from Home running.

We have held a few fundraising events over recent years, in particular the grand switch-on of our Christmas lights. We have so far raised a total of over £4,844.74. (The Arriva Tour 2010 raised £722.72).

See www.christmasinthornhill.com for details of this. This year's event takes place on Saturday 4th December 2010.

Eckersley House is luxurious and spotless! Every family has their own bedroom with sink, secure wardrobe and bedside telephone for incoming calls. This means that your child's nurses can contact you immediately if you are needed on the ward.

There are bathrooms, toilets and shower faciliities and a large kitchen area, with locked cupboards and fridges for each family. There is a spacious dining area, a TV lounge, a well-equipped playroom and an enclosed garden area. There is also free parking right next to the house for residents, and a laundry room.

When we stay there, Samantha sleeps on the ward with Bethany and I get a good night's sleep with Eloise in Eckersley House. It takes me three minutes to stroll to the ward in the morning and Samantha can go and catch up with lost sleep in Eckersley House during the day.

It was reasuring to know that when the time came for Bethany's liver transplant we would be able to live together as a family in a comfortable environment and get the sleep (and privacy) we need to keep sane.

Eckersley House has provided accommodation for the families of seriously ill children receiving treatment at St James Hospital in Leeds for the past 16 years – but that is about to change. St James’s Hospital is moving its children’s wards to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI) to create a paediatric Centre of Excellence. By July 2010 the majority of children’s wards will be moved to the new centre.

Sadly this means that Eckersley House will no longer be needed in its present location. So they have decided to move Eckersley House to a new site just two minutes' walk from the new children’s wards at the LGI. Plus, they are increasing the facility from 16 to 22 bedrooms to help even more families in their time of need.

The Sick Children’s Trust will be the sole provider of family accommodation at the LGI; so if they don’t move Eckersley House, every year hundreds of sick children will have to undergo prolonged medical treatment without their families being close by.

‘The Big Move’ to their new site at the LGI will cost £1.8million and they have nearly made it – with only a few days until the move, they really need help to raise those vital funds!

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