Help heart families through the recession

The economic recession has affected almost everyone. For families of children with heart conditions – ‘heart children’ – money troubles are often even more hard hitting.

Despite doing everything we can to support heart children and their families, there are still many finding it increasingly difficult to meet their child’s basic medical and social needs.

About half of the 5,000 children born every year with heart disease will at some stage require surgery. This usually means staying in hospital for a couple of weeks but when the condition is especially serious they may have to stay for many months. As well as visits to hospital for surgery, some children with heart disease – ‘heart children’ - need ongoing weekly blood tests in hospital to measure their medication levels. It’s not unusual for the hospital to be a long way from home which means parents’ visits can become very expensive and disruptive to family life.

Most families in the UK have been affected by the recession in some way, but some heart families are finding life even more of an uphill struggle and could really do with a helping hand. When a parent of a heart child learns that their child is sick, they may need to give up work to take care of them. Consequently, the family’s income drops but their spending doesn't.

A vital part of the work we do here at the Children’s Heart Federation (CHF) is to provide families across the UK with grants of up to £300 a year. These grants may seem small but can be a huge help with the additional costs incurred as a result of their child’s illness and helps ease the burden. The grants can be used to cover a variety of needs:

• Buying a replacement washing machine for a child with incontinence problems
• Covering the costs of travel to a hospital for a vital appointment
• Paying for a night in a hotel as a parent waits for their child to recover from surgery
• Contributing towards energy costs in winter to ensure heart children are kept warm
• Help towards funeral costs

CHF helped nine month old Sarah and her family. Sarah and her mum Judith have had to make several journeys from Liverpool to Newcastle to see her cardiologist in order to find out whether she needs a heart transplant. Judith is a single mum with two other children and has been struggling to cover the travel expenses for the 260 mile round trip journey. We have funded her travel costs, thereby reducing the stress of money worries associated with Sarah’s condition.

We receive around 20 requests every month for financial support and sadly we have to tell some families we can’t help them.

. . . That’s where you come in. There are many ways you and your friends and family, company, school, or community group can help us to improve the lives of heart children and their families and have fun at the same time!

Encourage a team of friends or colleagues to take part in a 10k run for CHF – we have guaranteed places

• Guess the baby competition
• Non-uniform day
• Sell cakes and donate the profits
• Get sponsored to lose a stone
• Nominate CHF as your Charity of the Year

Anything you could do or give would be hugely appreciated and would improve the lives of heart children and their families. If you would like any further information in the meantime, please call 020 7422 06 30 or contact us using the fundraising contact form.

Thank you.

Rachel Ainsworth

Fundraising Manager