Amazing burns victim Abbie backs hospital

Nov 9 2008 by Michael Kelly, Sunday Sun

Kids are pitching in to halp raise funds

A GROUP of dedicated school pupils have been putting their best foot forward to help build a state-of-the-art children’s hospital.

Youngsters from Lingey House Primary school in Gateshead have been taking part in the Sunday Sun-backed Great North Baton Challenge.

The appeal aims to provide funds for up-to-date facilities at the Great North Children’s Hospital.

The hospital is being built on the site of Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary.

And the £100m facility is set to become a centre for excellence in children’s healthcare — like London’s Great Ormond Street — with its first young patients due to come through the door in 2010.

On Friday around 320 children took part in a sponsored run around the park next to the school. Each class took it in turns to take the baton and do a lap of the park before handing the baton over.

The Baton Challenge is being organised by The Children’s Foundation, which wants to make sure every child treated at the new hospital has as comfortable and stress-free a stay as possible, by adding world-class activities, equipment and facilities.

Futuristic furniture with iPod attachments, visits by “clown doctors” and performing arts groups, wall projections — even 3D images of flying elephants — are just some of the ground-breaking additions we could see in the wards and treatment rooms.