Lancaster children’s charity launches new heroes initiative to honour doctors and nurses

The Barrie Wells Trust, based in Dalton Square, has successfully launched its Box4Kids Heroes initiative to help support hospital workers during the Covid-19 global pandemic.

The initiative awards doctors, nurses and hospital staff with luxury hampers and personalised letters from the young patients who nominate them.

Box4Kids Heroes is an innovative reversal of the trust’s focused Box4Kids scheme, which is currently postponed. Box4Kids is a nationwide initiative, enabling seriously ill children to enjoy VIP experiences in major hospitality venues from the comfort of executive boxes.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the trust has been unable to run its usual 200 annual Box4Kids events across the UK but philanthropist Barrie Wells, who funds and founded the charity, wanted to ensure that the community was still supported.

The trust created Box4Kids Heroes, a unique reversal of Box4Kids - which requires doctors, nurses and hospital staff to nominate seriously ill children to be treated to a VIP day out.

Instead, Box4Kids Heroes asks children to nominate their hero to receive a Box4Kids Heroes Award. They are then awarded a luxury hamper, certificate and personalised thank you letter from the trust and their nominee.

The personalised Hero awards have been a positive success story and huge boost to the hospital workers nominated, who face more pressure than ever before.

Dr Colin Bruce, Paediatric Orthopaedic Consultant at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, said: “What a lovely surprise to receive this kind gift from your organisation and most humbling to be nominated for a Box4Kids Hero from my patient.

"It is such an honour to take care of children who, in spite of all they face, show great courage and a positive approach to whatever hurdles life puts in their way. Thank you to all for honouring me in this way, keeping up the positive spirit in the clinic and all the work you do to help our younger generations.”

The charity hopes its Box4Kids activity will be able to return this year, but Barrie Wells plans to continue running the new Box4Kids Heroes initiative after its recent successful launch.

He said: "The Box4Kids Heroes initiative has been an incredibly uplifting way to thank hospital workers for the incredible, vital work that they do in supporting and saving the lives of young people and is something that I would certainly like to continue beyond the Covid-19 pandemic as the staff will still be there!

"The simple act of giving back is the main reason I got into philanthropy and it is a joy to be able to make a positive difference in people’s lives.”