Foundation Offers Helping Hand to Bramble Unit

Christmas may still be a month or so away, but for youngsters on the Bramble Unit at the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital they were given some pre-festive cheer this week thanks to the Exeter Foundation.

Foundation chairman, Tony Rowe OBE, along with fellow trustees Keiron Northcott, David Bird and Alan Quantick, plus current Exeter Chiefs players Haydn Thomas and Will Hooley, were on hand to hand over a cheque for £10,000 to help refurbish the outside play area on the unit.

In existence since the 1980s, the play area is a well-used and much loved area on the unit and is accessed on a daily basis by children between the ages of 0 and 18, who are attending for a variety of conditions and procedures.

Not only does it bring huge enjoyment for those who use it, but it also provides a safe area for patients and their families to get some fresh air, exercise and socialise.

Although it lasted well over the years, the play area had started to look tired and worn and was in need of an upgrade. And that’s where the Exeter Foundation, the official charity of the Exeter Chiefs, came to the rescue.

On hearing the news, the trustees acted swiftly to pledge the funds needed to carry out the essential works, which are due to be completed over the next few weeks.

Commenting, Mr Rowe said: “Everyone is well aware of the amazing work that is carried out on a daily basis by all the staff on the Bramble Children’s Unit.

“On hearing the news that the unit were in need of funding to refurbish the children’s play area, the trustees of the Exeter Foundation wasted little time in agreeing to provide the necessary funding.

“It’s for causes like this that we set up the Foundation all those years ago and as we look to the future, I know the money raised through match-days at the Chiefs and with other events locally, will go a long way to improving the lives of so many people in and around our local community.”

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