About Us
Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust sees hundreds of thousands of children and young people from around the region, nationally and even internationally. Our staff provide services which range from emergency care through to support for families in the community and at home – supporting both the mental and physical health of children and young people.
The Children’s Hospital Charity supports Sheffield Children’s by funding enhancements that are over and above the NHS provision.
This includes:
Funding research into healthcare technology and the care, prevention and treatment of childhood illnesses.
Some of our achievements that have helped build a better hospital.
vCreate
To keep families connected, vCreate has been funded in two departments. The service is available in our Neonatal Surgical Unit (NSU) and on paediatric post-surgical ward, which cares for children for anything from a few days to weeks after surgery.
The secure video messaging technology allows nursing teams to share photos and video updates of children with their families when they are unable to be on the ward. The nurses can add personalised messages and effects to the captured memories to make them extra special for every family. The project started on NSU and has expanded so parents of children transferred between departments can still receive photo and video updates of their little ones as they recover.
vCreate helps bridge the gap for parents; if they are needed at home with other siblings they can still receive updates of their child in hospital.
Ward 6
Donations transformed our ward where we care for children and teenages with cancer and blood disorders. Ward 6 treats children from babies through to 19-year-olds and is one of twenty principle treatment centres in the UK.
The new ward has created space, privacy, and natural light to make isolation a place of sanctuary and calm. Four single patient rooms and six isolation rooms with ensuite facilities, a four-bed bay with assistant bathroom and a two-bed bay give patients a place to make their own, with room for all their toys and space for a parent to sleep comfortably alongside them.
Immersive Technology Funding Cancer and Leukaemia Ward
Ground-breaking immersive technology equipment has been installed within the playroom of the new ward.
This creative technology brings the room to life allowing children to physically interact with the space. From popping virtual bubbles to experiencing virtual environments of places patients know and love such as visiting home or joining a birthday party. They may see their friends and relatives beamed virtually into the room.
For children hospitalised for several months at a time, it provides a safe way to interact with the outside world.
Music Workshops
The Becton School is a unique hospital school that supports young people across several sites at both Sheffield Children’s Hospital and the Becton Centre, which hosts the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS). The dedicated teaching team make sure children and young people can still receive education whilst also getting the medical care and support they need.
Chris’ role provides group musical experiences where possible and 121 sessions for those who can’t leave their rooms. The activity is designed to let young people explore and enjoy music-making while building their confidence in their own abilities to create, learn and express themselves.
Chris brings suitcases of instruments and equipment, including synthesisers, guitars, drum pads, tuned percussion, as well as DJ decks and music production equipment so that the patients can always find an instrument that is right for them.
Chris has developed methods of making every instrument accessible and playable so that young people can achieve the joy and satisfaction of creating and expressing themselves within the short periods he works with them. Every child has different needs and finding how to cater for these needs quickly and effectively is a major part of this role.
