Charity Founded By Chiswick Woman Aiming for Bumper Year
Christmas For CAMHS gives presents to children in hospital
Presents collected for children in hospital over Christmas
Christmas For CAMHS began as an informal group in 2016 when Rosanna Bevan, a junior doctor from Chiswick, realised that some children, in hospital over the Christmas period, don’t get any presents. These children are inpatients within the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Dr Bevan was encouraged by Matt Glanville and Lauren Nathan-Lane, who couldn’t bear the thought of any child being in hospital and forgotten by Santa.
Christmas For CAMHS has gone from strength to strength since then - achieving registered charity status in July 2020.
While many members of the public and corporate donors give Christmas gifts to children’s hospitals or children’s wards in general hospitals, CAMHS units were frequently forgotten, before this group of friends decided to take action.
Having raised £1,000 in 2016, they have increased their fundraising and outreach each year to the point that they had already raised £8,000 at Christmas time 2019! In total they raised £10,000 in 12 months.
Christmas For CAMHS hopes to ensure every child in a CAMHS unit has some quality presents to unwrap this Christmas and it seems the public are firmly behind this ambition.
Dr Bevan said, “We want to let young people going through a difficult time know we’re thinking of them. We’d love to reach more of them and give meaningful gifts that help them cope whilst in hospital”.
Staff at Hillview Hospital in Ebbw Vale said, “The gifts were very much appreciated by the Young People, they struggled to understand why people would want to go out of their way to do this for them, but were very happy with the presents.”
Almost all funds raised are spend directly on presents for unwell children, as everybody working with the charity is an unpaid volunteer elf and overheads are extremely low.
To donate to this year’s appeal click here.
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November 21, 2020
