Our news

• North Mid Charity has worked with Caring Kits for Kids to donate its 300^th “Kid’s Kit” bags for children who need to go into emergency foster care.
• The “Kid’s Kit” bags, which contain all the essentials that a child might need for a first night in foster care, such as PJs, underwear, toothbrush and hairbrush, plus some personal comforts including a book, activities and a soft toy.
• Over 25 children a year to benefit for the bags.

A Kid’s Kit bag initiative pioneered at North Mid has reached a milestone this week with 300 bags now donated for children who need to go into emergency foster care after they receive care from hospitals across the country.  

There are occasions when children arrive only at North Mid’s Children’s A&E Department in the clothes they’re wearing, and perhaps whatever is in their pockets- and this is when the “Kid’s kits” come in to affect.

Each backpack, donated by North Mid Charity in partnership with charity Caring Kits for Kids, provides contains age-appropriate clothes, toys, books and other items, and are made up for toddlers, young children, older children and teenagers.

Dr Charlotte Clements, clinical lead for North Mid’s Children’s A&E department, said:  “Each year, over 25 children are brought to the A&E at North Mid by social workers or the police, because they’ve been found home alone, wandering in the street, or need emergency care for neglect or abuse injuries. Sometimes they arrive only in the clothes they’re wearing, and perhaps whatever is in their pockets.

“For us, it is vital that we help these children feel less scared and try to make them feel valued, and although it probably seems small, a backpack full of clean, new, personal items that the child or young person gets to keep, really makes an important difference, and shows these vulnerable young people that they are in a safe and caring place.”

Having been co-founded by staff at North Mid in 2018, Caring Kits for Kids has gone from strength to strength and has expanded its support network to include hospitals across the country.

       

Mark Houghton, co-founder of Caring Kits for Kids, said: “We as the trustees are so grateful to all who have helped us to get where we are today. To be delivering the 300th pack is a huge achievement and would not have been possible without the support of the hospital staff, volunteers and Alstom.  We now support a number of hospitals across the UK and look forward to going from strength to strength, to ensure we are able to provide for those in need at their most vulnerable time.”

Nick Crossfield, Managing Director Alstom UK&I, said: “The foster packs programme is something we have been doing for over 3 years and I have personally been involved with it since the start. I think it’s really important that we give people who are less fortunate than ourselves a solid positive start in difficult circumstances so its something that we will continue to support going forwards as it is important to us.”

On the partnership with North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust and the North Mid Charity, Nick was full of praise “great organisers, great partnership with yourselves and North Middlesex Hospital and its one of the nicer initiatives that we work on.”

If you want to help us make more backpacks for vulnerable children going into emergency foster care or other charity projects, you can contribute to North Mid Charity by contacting our fundraising team at 020 8887 2935 or northmid.donations@nhs.net