Staff from Virgin Money’s Milton Keynes branch, along with representatives from national charity CHF, today visited Birmingham Children’s Hospital to deliver chocolate Easter eggs donated by Virgin Money staff and customers. All 36 children on the cardiac unit received an egg, and there were enough collected to give one each to their visiting siblings too.

One in every 133 babies is born with congenital heart disease (CHD) – around 5,000 a year. CHD can greatly affect children’s lives as well as the lives of their parents and family.

Estelle Vasey, Charity and Community Coordinator at Virgin Money said: “All our staff and customers at the Milton Keynes branch were so pleased to be able to work together to help make Easter just that little bit more special for these children.

“They were delighted to see the children’s’ faces light up after our visit from the Easter bunny.”

Teresa Figari, a Cardiac Liaison nurse on the ward commented: “The children on the ward have been through so much and we are always struck by how incredibly brave they are.

“At such a young age many of them have already had to contend with major surgery, so it’s great to be able to give them a special treat like this.

“We can’t thank Virgin Money or CHF enough for helping to make it happen. It certainly helped brighten up everyone’s day on the ward.”

Anne Keatley-Clarke, Chief Executive of CHF, who helped arrange the day, added: “Everyone at CHF is always delighted to help organise events like this.

“We provide a range of support to children who have congenital heartdisease and their parents, but even small events like this can make a massive difference and allow children with CHD to forget their illness for the day and just be children.

“Thank you to everyone at Virgin Money for helping to make this happen.”

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