CHARITY OF THE WEEK: Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity grateful for support during the pandemic

Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity (HHCC) is the registered charity for Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT) and employs more than 5,000 colleagues, caring for a wide range of people across Harrogate District Hospital, Ripon Community Hospital and Community Teams across North Yorkshire and the North East.

HHCC funds specialist equipment, training and services, going above and beyond the provision of the NHS to help enhance treatment and facilities for all departments and services at HDFT.

Through organised events, individual giving, community fundraising and much more, HHCC are able to do more for patients, staff and their families in the care of HDFT.

This enables HHCC to enhance the provision of the NHS, particularly now, during a time of pressure and strain on all resources due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

The financial pressures the NHS is under has always been challenging with the priority to provide accessible healthcare to all, however over the course of the last two years, the NHS has been under more pressure than ever before.

The evolving pandemic continues to draw strain on the essential services HDFT provides and this is where, thanks to supporters, fundraisers and donors, HHCC is able to make a huge difference and go above and beyond.

Sammy Lambert, Business Development, Charity and Volunteer Manager at Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity is thankful to all those who have supported the charity, especially over a challenging couple of years.

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She said: “Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity is enormously grateful for the support,especially from the ‘Friends of Harrogate Hospital’.

“The ‘Friends’ are celebrating 55 years of raising money to enhance the patient experience, specifically at Harrogate District Hospital this year and over the years, the ‘Friends’ have raised over £2.3 million and funded thousands of projects, which could not be funded through the NHS budget at the time.

“Their most inspirational campaign raised an amazing £335,000 to house the hospital’s first MRI Scanner.

“ We are so grateful for all of our supporters as every penny counts.”

One thing the pandemic has taught many is the gratitude for NHS workers.

HHCC not only helps to go above and beyond for the benefit of patients, but this small yet ambitious charity works hard to support their NHS colleagues through many health and wellbeing opportunities.

One of the initiatives includes the ongoing roll out of fruit and vegetable hampers to all staff at HDFT which brings a smile as well as a healthy nutritional benefit to every colleague.

Sammy added: “There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about people’s generosity that has been provided.

“The HHCC team would not have been able to make the impact they have without the kindness of our supporters.

“With or without the pandemic, HHCC will always go above and beyond the provisions of the NHS to help enhance treatment, facilities and the environment for patients, visitors, service users, staff and their families.”

HHCC recognises that there are many challenges following the evolving nature of the pandemic and the knock-on effect issues that this will bring.

As a result, the team still wants to hear from the local community as they are determined to continue to make the unique life changing differences, but they can only achieve this with the support of people in the community, local businesses, organisations, groups and schools.

If you would like to support Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity on this journey to make a difference to your local NHS, you can get in touch with the HHCC and Volunteer Team.

There are a number of ways that you can make an impact, including becoming one of their volunteers, through taking on a fundraising challenge or making a donation.

To find out more information about how you could get involved to support your local NHS, head over to the Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity website at: https://hhcc.co.uk/

You can also get in touch with the team by emailing [email protected] or call 01423 557408.

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