Worthing Hospital children's ward given £2,000 to buy Christmas presents after community fundraiser

The Worthing HELP Group was set up via Facebook and, in just five weeks, £2,300 was raised with the help of the local community for the Bluefin Children's Ward at Worthing Hospital.

The purpose of the fundraiser was to buy ‘lots of items to keep all the poorly children under their care occupied throughout their stay’, according to group founder Shaun Howard.

Shaun added: “Rather than overwhelming the ward with items being delivered to them, I have set this page up so we can just transfer the funds so they can just go and get whatever the kids are in need of.

“I was sat on Facebook one Friday night and I noticed just how many posts and pages there were of people asking for help with various things. So, I asked myself what I could do, so I set up the Worthing Help Group.

“Within five weeks, the Facebook group has gained 1,400 members. Within 12 hours, I had to turn to Russell [Cochran] and ask for help managing the group.”

From mental health support to supplying children’s clothes and toys to moving a bed – the group ‘will help any Worthing resident that needs it’.

"We put contacts together with contacts,” Shaun said. “All we ask is for pleases and thank yous, that people are respectful in the group and that no money exchanges hands.

“This is just the beginning. Hopefully next year we might become a charity and start setting up similar groups in other local towns.”

Councillor Russell Cochran – the group’s trustee – said his daughter spent Christmas 2018 on the ward so this campaign ‘really hit home with me’.

He added: “It turned out there were quite a few members that had children on the Bluefin Ward at Worthing Hospital. They all said how amazing the staff were there. So, with the size of the group growing we thought why not set up a JustGiving Page for the ward.

"That Christmas would’ve been ruined if it wasn’t for the team at Bluefin.”

Marc Young and Lamorna Parnell co-ordinated deliveries of food parcels – supported by Spencer and Victoria Adams and Jen Tribe.

Russell said: “Even in just a short time we have lost count of the cases where we have made a difference. A little helpful guidance never hurt from a caring local position that was Shaun’s vision that has truly taken off. People identified with the unity in that vision, it has really brought down any barriers of shame or anxiety in asking.”

Jordan Luxford – who runs local waste management company A Star Waste Management – has supported the initiative. He said: “We can admin the group, but really it’s the community coming together to help one another that makes the difference.”

Zoe Terry, head of nursing at Bluefin Ward, said staff – who were gifted cheesecakes and mince pies by the volunteers – are ‘so grateful to the wonderful Worthing HELP Group for their kindness’.

She added: “This incredibly generous donation will help us purchase equipment and items on the ward that we need. It can be a tough time being in hospital over Christmas, so this will make a massive difference to the children on Bluefin Ward.”

Hayley Edwards, hospital play assistant at Bluefin Ward, said the group ‘raised an incredible amount of money’.

"It means so much to the ward as it enables us to get the equipment that is vital for our patients,” she said.

"Shaun is an incredible man to raise so much money and provide incredible donations to our playroom.”