Maanch | Matching for Impact

Alexander Devine Children's Cancer Trust

Registered Charity

Registered Country:

United Kingdom

Registration Number:

1118947

Website:

http://www.alexanderdevine.org

Brief Description

Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service provides essential support and outstanding care from the point of diagnosis to families of children (age 0 – 19 years) with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions across Berkshire and the surrounding counties.  Our services are free for our families to use and we only receive 3.85 percent of funding from the NHS.  The rest we have to raise through our fundraising efforts. 
 
John and Fiona Devine set up the charity in memory of their extraordinary little boy, Alexander, who died at the age of 8 in 2006 from a rare brain tumour.  Their personal experience, and subsequent extensive research, led them to realise that there was a vital need for a local children’s hospice service in Berkshire.  Our hospice service now operates across the core area of Berkshire, but extends well into Buckinghamshire, South Oxfordshire, North Hampshire and Middlesex.

Vision & Mission

To reach out to every child and family who needs us, offering support and care from people who understand.

Aims & Activities

Facts & Figures

Year Founded:

2007

No. of Employees:

No. of Volunteers:

153

No. of Trustees/Directors:

Jurisdiction(s) / Area(s) of Operation:

Slough,reading,west Berkshire,bracknell Forest,windsor And Maidenhead,wokingham,buckinghamshire

Total Income:

£2621225.00

Total Spending:

£1300000.00

Audited:

yes

What does your organisation do?

                            Our ethos is ‘the child is central to all that we do’ and we offer holistic care that ensures we meet the individual needs of every child and their family. Our team consists of children’s nurses, carers, play specialists, a music therapist, a doctor and care volunteers.  Our services include: respite care, specialist and music therapy, symptom management, crisis and emergency care, family support, end of life care and bereavement support.  Care is delivered in the community at home, in hospital or in school, and within our own children’s hospice, which includes state-of-the-art facilities such as a hydrotherapy pool, sensory room and bereavement suite.  Our varied mix of care activities for families includes arts and crafts in our creative learning zone and outdoor play in our sensory garden.  We provide a skilled team, dedicated to the care of families. We work in close partnership with other health and social care professionals in the NHS to provide flexible and joined-up support.

Who does your organisation help?

                            Our service is offered to children and young people who meet our eligibility criteria for specialist palliative care.  In the past year we’ve had referrals for children across the age range with various conditions from the categories cardiac, genetic, neurological, metabolic and oncology conditions.  All the children we support have life-limiting or life-threatening conditions which require constant medical attention.  These children will often have very complex illnesses that can affect fine and gross motor skills, key functions and learning abilities.  Parents become carers 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  As well as having significant medical needs, the children and families we support also have behavioural and emotional needs so the services we provide are responsive to the needs of our families and holistic in approach, including activities such as music therapy and work with our play specialists.