It’s our silver anniversary this month!
In September 1999 RUHX began its lifelong dedication to charity fundraising as The Forever Friends Appeal. Big Ted, a cute and cuddly teddy bear, was our well-cuddled mascot.
At this time, the RUH embarked on a major redevelopment scheme to update the hospital’s facilities. This project saw the launch of the official NHS charity of the RUH, which helped raised enough donations to equip the hospital with a much-needed atrium entrance. Since then, the charity has continued to support the development of the hospital with huge projects that continue to have significant impact on the Southwest community – and beyond.
And it’s all thanks to our fantastic fundraisers and dedicated donors. All of You! Here’s some of the highlights:
– 1999 – New main atrium fundraising
– 2002 – A&E department refurbishment
– 2011 – New NICU centre open thanks to our Space to Grow campaign
– 2016 – First CT-Sim machine purchased for the RUH
– 2019 – New RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre opens thanks to £2 million raised
– 2020 – Charity supports NHS heroes who work throughout the pandemic
– 2023 – The RUH’s first surgical robot is purchased by us, costing over £2 million
– 2024 – New Dyson Cancer Centre opens, we’d been fundraising for over 10 years.
Read more about our first 25 years in our latest magazine that you can find here.
Also, we’ll be onsite near the new Wellbeing Garden at the RUH Community Day on Saturday 21st September. Come along to say hello and celebrate with us.