Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Charity are inviting local communities to give a gift to patients who are in University Hospital Lewisham and Queen Elizabeth Hospital this Christmas.

Donations to this appeal will enable our charity to buy:

- New toys for young patients (aged 0 to16) who are too ill to be at home for the festive break and

- Winter clothing for our vulnerable patients who do not have access to warm clothes for when they go home from hospital.

Your donation however big or small, will bring lots of smiles to our younger patients on Christmas Day and beyond. It will also bring comfort to our patients by providing them with warm clothing when returning home from hospital.

Robert Cole, Head of Nursing for Children and Young People explained: We run our Christmas toy appeal every year and we are so grateful to the public for their generous donations. We understand many people may be feeling the squeeze financially, but if you do have some spare change, please donate to our toy appeal. Your generosity will help us spread some festive cheer as we do everything we can for children and young people who are spending Christmas day in hospital.

Kate Hudson, Lead Dementia Nurse commented: Offering warm clothing to our vulnerable patients who are travelling home has never been more important than during this cost-of-living crisis. It can sometimes be difficult for patients relatives to bring them in warm clothing, so we would like to make sure that every patient leaves our hospitals warm and cosy. We plan to buy warm fleeces, jogging bottoms, hats and gloves from the money raised by this important appeal.

Margarita Vidiella, Head of Charity explains how you can help: We have been so grateful for the support from our local communities this year. This festive season we are making a plea that you once again get behind us and donate online to support these two fantastic campaigns your gifts will make a huge difference to our patients.

Donations to this appeal will be used to purchase toys and warm clothing for patients, however, should you prefer your donation be allocated to either purchasing toys or warm clothing please mention this when making your donation or email lg.charity@nhs.net.

We are truly grateful for our community's generosity and support during these challenging times.

Any funds raised which are left over following the festive period will be allocated to purchase further toys and educational items for our young patients as well as warm clothes provision for our vulnerable patients.

About our charity:

The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Charity makes a difference by funding projects and initiatives that enhance care and improve patient, visitor and staff experience.

Supporting projects that fall outside of standard NHS provision, the charity supports University Hospital Lewisham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich and the wider community our Trust serves.

You can find out more about the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Charity on our website: www.lgtcharity.org.uk

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust Charity is a registered Charity No. 1050522.