Giving Trees provide much-needed items for Hospice Charity Patients

Leading to the festive season 2024, the Giving Tree initiatives at The Leys School and The Cambridge Building Society brought much-needed donations to Arthur Rank Hospice Charity.

The Leys School donated items to the Inpatient Unit at Arthur Rank Hospice, and The Cambridge Building Society collected items for the Hospice at Home team.

The donations they collected will make a significant impact in supporting individuals in Cambridgeshire living with an advanced serious illness or other life-limiting condition and those who need end of life care, both at the Hospice and for patients in the community.

The Leys School 

Bisseker House at The Leys School, Cambridge, chose to support Arthur Rank Hospice Charity’s Inpatient Unit with their Giving Tree initiative. School Shop Manager, Sarah Williams, explained why they chose to support the charity:

“My best friend’s mum passed away in August and during the last few months of her life Arthur Rank helped her so much. I usually participate in the Dunelm giving tree each Christmas and decided to hold a giving tree in the school shop as a thank you for all the hard work the Charity does.”

The Leys School, with their Giving Tree campaign, encouraged students, staff, and the community to donate items to the Inpatient Unit at Arthur Rank Hospice.

The Leys School community generously donated nightwear, socks, toiletries, hand-held fans, and lip balms for patients at the Inpatient Unit as part of their Giving Tree initiative.

On 11 December, pupils from Bisseker House at The Leys School loaded a van full of donations and delivered them to Arthur Rank Hospice. Shop Manager, Sarah Williams, supported the students in coordinating the collection of donations. Sarah shared:

“Arthur Rank Hospice Charity is well known within the Leys School as it is the charity that Bisseker House supports each year, so it was easy to set up and going forward it will be something that we plan to do each year.”

The Cambridge Building Society 

Sarah met with her friend Natasha, who works at The Cambridge Building Society, and said:

“She [Natasha] thought it was a great idea and decided to get Cambridge Building Society involved as well.”

Natasha wanted to support the Charity as she has a personal connection to Arthur Rank Hospice Charity because her mum was cared for by the Hospice at Home team. Following the care provided by the team, she was keen to give back and loved the idea of the Giving Tree, so proposed the idea of having Giving Trees to her employer. Cambridge Building Society had been so supportive during her mum’s illness and jumped at the chance to host their own Giving Tree Initiative. Natasha explained:

 “Having had the Hospice at Home team look after my mother recently, supporting Arthur Rank Hospice Charity is close to my heart”.

The Hospice at Home service at Arthur Rank Hospice Charity gave The Cambridge Building Society a list of much needed items for people to donate via the Giving Tree initiative. They accepted donations from 25 November until 14 December 2024.

Customers selected a tag from the Giving Tree in their local store, purchased the item on the tag, and then returned the item to the store. Stores in central Cambridge, Sawston, Great Shelford, and Cambourne were focused on donations for Arthur Rank Hospice Charity, but customers could drop donations to any Cambridge Building Society store as other locations were supporting other Cambridge based charities also.

The Cambridge Building Society’s Giving Tree Initiative was very successful, and they collected an amazing amount of donations. Natasha and her colleagues, Carole and Holly, dropped off the donations for the Hospice at Home Team on 19 December and then helped to spread some more festive joy by choosing to participate in the Christmas Carols on the Inpatient Unit. Lynn Begley Clinical Nurse Specialist for the Hospice at Home team, received the donations and said:

“We were completely overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of everyone who donated to our patients via Cambridge Building Society. We can see that a lot of thought went into all of the wonderful gifts we received which will make a huge difference to patients and their families who we visit in the community. Thank you.”

The Charity are extremely grateful for all the donations received from The Leys School and The Cambridge Building Society the Giving Tree initiatives will make such a difference to patients supported in Cambridgeshire living with an advanced serious illness or other life-limiting condition and those who need end of life care both at the Hospice and in the community.

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If you would like to get involved to support the ‘Outstanding’ services that Arthur Rank Hospice Charity provides across Cambridgeshire, please contact us by emailing fundraising@arhc.org.uk or telephone 01223 675888.