Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I would like to tell you a little bit about Childrens Hospice South West and what they do.

At Children’s Hospice South West they care for children who have illnesses which mean they will die before reaching adulthood. They provide expert care for them, their parents and well siblings.

Children’s Hospice South West was founded in 1991 by Eddie and Jill Farwell after they experienced for themselves the urgent need for hospice care for children in the South West. Their two eldest children, Katie and Tom, had life-limiting illnesses and they had to travel over four hours, from their home in North Devon to Helen House in Oxford, then the country’s only children’s hospice.

In 1995 Little Bridge House, the South West’s first children’s hospice opened its doors to families from across the South West. Little Bridge House very quickly became oversubscribed, which led to the opening of the charity’s second hospice Charlton Farm located just outside Bristol, in 2007.

They provide hospice care to life-limited children and their families from across the South West; from South Gloucester, Bristol, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall, and the Isles of Scilly. 

They are the only organisation in this area to provide such care. Some families may use the hospice for many years, from the time the child is first diagnosed as having an incurable condition which will mean they will die in childhood.
They may come for planned short breaks, emergency care or end of life care, and will usually be accompanied by family members.

The whole family can stay at the hospices, and with a dedicated sibling support service available, this means that the well brothers and sisters can be cared for during their visit and enjoy spending time with other children in similar situations to their own.

The support they give extends to the whole family, into bereavement and beyond for as long as each family needs them.

With over 1,000 life-limited children across the South West, thier support for families is absolutely vital.

Ashton Whitehouse was born to Mark and Amy (my cousin) in June 2009 and was born with a rare illness called Zellweger syndrome and at 6 weeks old was moved to the Childrens Hospice South West in Wraxhall where our families were able to be with him and his sister and brother were able to build some great memories just being able to do everyday family things.

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