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Local Charity...
Accommodation in Abbey Road for families with children in hospital…
Ronald McDonald House
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK provides free accommodation and support to families with seriously ill children in hospital. There are currently 11 houses across the UK, just a short walk away from the partnered NHS hospitals which provide specialist care for children. Equipped with communal kitchen/living areas, laundry facilities, Wi-Fi, en-suite bedrooms and hospital line phones, the houses provide families with everything they need. Parents are able to have their other children stay with them at the house and have friends and family visit them whenever they wish, making it a true ‘home away from home’. Here in Brighton, we have an 18-bedroom house. Working alongside the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital and the Trevor Mann Baby Unit, we are able to accommodate around 200 families from all over Sussex, Surrey, Kent and even further afield each year. In 2019, families stayed with us for an average of 26 nights.
It costs from just £1 a day to get your name into every Queens Park home every month
...to find out more call 01273 551021 or email info@queensparkliving.co.uk
In 2017, Poppy’s family stayed with us for 356 days after she was born with Gastroschisis. Without our house in Brighton, the family would have had to make a 45-minute journey to and from the hospital each day just to see their little girl. Spending a fortune on petrol, they would have the added stress of not being able to be at the hospital as much as they wanted, especially if there was an emergency in the early hours of the morning. Staying with us completely removed those worries. They were able to be as close to Poppy as possible, along with their other daughter and Poppy’s big sister, Grace. The family have been back to visit the house many times since being discharged, to meet up with the House Team and let them know how well they are all getting on now back at home. Poppy is doing remarkably well; she is almost three and will be starting nursery this year. On their last visit, the family expressed some kind words about the house and charity:
‘’Truly, being so close to Poppy in hospital impacted her recovery. This charity provides a beautiful, beautiful service. It’s an integral part of a child’s life in hospital – keeping their family close. The impact having these houses makes is heart-warming.’’ For more information, visit rmhc.org.uk/ourhouses/brighton-house/
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