This week, Claire House Children’s Hospice has launched an urgent Appeal to help more seriously ill children across Merseyside, Cheshire and North Wales.
The Appeal Kick Off
The Appeal kicked off with a PR launch event at Liverpool’s Liver Building on Monday 22nd October. Families and Claire House staff met members of the media to raise awareness of the importance of the hospice’s work.
Speaking at the event, David Pastor, Chief Executive of Claire House, said: “The number of children coming to Claire House has risen 84% in the last six years.
“We are getting to the point where we risk having to turn families away. To stop this from happening we are asking the people of Merseyside to help us reach every dying child.”
The campaign uses real statements telling stories of what life is like for families who need help from Claire House. The statements will be in Claire House shops, on the radio, on billboards around Liverpool and painted (temporarily) onto the pavements around Liverpool One.
During the launch event, some of the Claire House families took the time to be interviewed by Radio City, Radio Merseyside and BBC North West.
Over the course of the week, we have been fortunate to be featured on BBC North West Tonight, Granada Reports, along with articles in the Echo, the Flintshire Leader, Cheshire Live and the Runcorn & Widnes World.
Did you hear us on Radio City Talk?
Along with adverts on Radio City 2, some of the Claire House team were invited to join Mick Coyle on his Radio City Talk show. One of the Claire House mums, Hayley, joined our Nurse Consultant, Lesley, and Head of Communications, Hannah, to discuss why we have launched the appeal and why the hospice is so important to families.
<<< You can watch the full video here!
Or you can listen to the audio here.
Take a walk down Paradise Street, Liverpool One
In order to raise awareness, we also have some of the statements from families painted (temporarily) onto the floors of Liverpool One’s Paradise Street – the street from McDonalds to John Lewis. These will be here for another few days so catch them while you can.
We would love to see your photos, if you do see these.
Liverpool Towers
Those driving along the Strand in Liverpool, both from the tunnels towards the Liver Building and the opposite way, will pass a couple of digital advertising boards called Liverpool Towers. Over the next week, you will see adverts – featuring statements from some Claire House families – appearing on these Towers.
Why we need the public’s help?
Money raised by the Appeal will be spent on increasing the care the charity offers families in their homes, helping more children at the hospice on the Wirral and building a new £14 million children’s hospice in Liverpool.
Claire House already has a site in West Derby, Liverpool, from which it offers limited day-care. In order to deliver the complex medical care the children referred to the hospice need on a 24 hour basis, the charity will need to extensively renovate some areas of the old site and build others.
If you would like to get involved, please visit our Appeal page.
