Barnet residents are being urged to support their local NHS charity to ensure its vital services can continue in north London

A colourful illustration of people throwing their hands in the air

The Royal Free Charity is asking for help to bolster the support it gives to the 1.6 million patients and 12,000 members of staff across the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.

The ‘Hands Up! for your hospital’ campaign encourages north Londoners to have fun raising money by handmaking goods to sell, putting a hand in their pockets to donate money usually spent on take-away coffees or other treats or taking a hands-on approach with a sponsored physical challenge.

The charity delivers a range of services across Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free hospitals.

The charity is home to one of the NHS’s largest volunteering services. Their roles range from offering VR therapy to chemotherapy patients, companionship to patients with dementia, helping patients find their way around busy hospitals and pet therapy dog sessions.

Its support hub, which is the first of its kind based in a UK hospital, gives patients with life-changing injuries or long-term health conditions housing, financial and welfare advice. The hub also supports amputee and irritable bowel disease peer support groups.

Complementary massage therapists provide specialised therapeutic massage, acupuncture, reflexology and scar tissue therapy to patients and staff. They helped 11,000 patients in 2023.

Jon Spiers, chief executive of the Royal Free Charity, said: “We’re asking our local communities to lend the NHS a helping hand this winter.

“Whether it’s through our amazing volunteers, our incredible complementary therapists or our unique support hub offering welfare and benefits advice, with your support, we are there hand-in-hand with our patients, their families and the NHS staff who care for them.

“However you want to fundraise, you’ll be making a huge difference.”

Jon added: “An elderly patient could receive an hour of volunteer companionship for £20. A £55 donation could pay for a Christmas hamper for a ward working on Christmas Day. A gift of £1,000 could help our support hub to stop a vulnerable patient from becoming homeless when they leave hospital.”

Fundraising packs can be downloaded from the charity’s website:

www.royalfreecharity.org/handsup

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