Lifeline news
A glittering afternoon
On 17 October, Great Ormond Street Hospital's Activity Centre was buzzing with laughter and creativity.
Visitors, families and patients were invited to decorate stockings, which will be hung up on the fireplace that's currently being uncovered in the hospital (so that Santa can get in!).
Amid a flurry of glitter, glue, silver paper, paint and crayons, children created their very own Christmas masterpieces to be hung up on the mantlepiece to welcome Santa to the hospital at Christmas time.
A fun day was had by all, with the children full of enthusiasm talking about which part of Christmas they were most looking forward to. Among them was our cover star Isabelle (right) who, as you can see, loved every second.
Happy birthday to friends
The Friends Membership Scheme celebrated its 10th birthday at the Annual Friends Family Fun Day at Paradise Wildlife Park in September, where more than 1,600 Friends members enjoyed a fun-filled day
Now, the Friends Membership Scheme is aiming to raise £147,000 to fund a CT Scanner that's especially well suited to the needs of our young patients, featuring faster scanning, lower radiation doses and superior images - meaning patients can have a CT scan rather than a longer, more painful procedure.
As part of the celebrations, Friends members have been asked to invite friends and family to join the scheme.
Find out more about the Friends Membership Scheme
Magical celebrations
Throughout the year, many supporters have been making a personal celebration all that more special by asking friends and family to donate money to the charity instead of giving gifts.
One such supporter is Mrs Vallins (right) who, for her 100th birthday party, had the wonderful notion of asking for donations to be given to Great Ormond Street Hospital, instead of presents for herself.
Sixty of Mrs Vallins' close friends and relatives attended her birthday party. A day she said, she would "never forget".
The big 40 payback
Anthony and Rachel Dodd celebrated their 40th birthdays with a fundraising auction at their local church hall in Newmarket to thank staff at the hospital for their hard work in helping their son.
Edward, 13, was born with VACTREL syndrome, a rare condition that affects his heart and kidneys. In August last year, he underwent surgery open-heart surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital to repair a faulty valve in his heart. He also had a kidney transplant.
At the celebration, a whole host of prizes was auctioned, including tickets to a top rugby match and a flying lesson.
"I can't believe how much money we raised," Rachel said afterwards. "I thought we might get £1,000 or £2,000 but the donations are still coming in. The money is going to such a worthy cause - the job they do is simply wonderful."
Treasure island
The Pirates Adventure charity premiere raised a record-breaking figure of more than £100,000 in Majorca in May.
For the event, six patients from the hospital were flown with their families, courtesy of Thomson Holidays, to enjoy a week's VIP treatment as guests of honour at the premiere of the Pirates Adventure Show.
The children were chosen for the courage they have demonstrated throughout their life-saving treatments at the hospital. They were joined on the island by a glittering line-up off celebrities including the Hollywood star Orlando Bloom, Gaynor Faye and cast members of Coronation Street and Holby City (pictured)
Partners for lives
Great Ormond Street Hospital has become a key part of Europe's leading powerhouse after the hospital and three other London NHS Trusts joined forces with University College London (which includes our existing partner, UCL Institute of Child Health).
By pooling resources and expertise, the newly created UCL Partners will produce more world-class research, delivering benefits more rapidly to patients.
Professor Andrew Copp, Dean of the UCL Institute of Child Health, explained: "This will help us win more resources for child health research - when many institutions are reducing it. We can also share expertise, and have a base of patients, supporters, clinicians and researchers large enough to do the research we need. It gives us freedom to develop to do even better."
Dr Jane Collins, the hospital's Chief Executive, also welcomed the news, saying: "Our two organisations already work closely together, delivering world-class research. This has included creating whole new areas of medicine - gene therapy for immune diseases and non-surgical treatments for some heart conditions.
"Our research may be about reducing adverse events in hospital, such as infections, or bringing evidence to bear on policy, such as immunisation."
UCL Partners, which treat about 1.5 million patients every year, will support 3,500 scientists, researchers and clinicians.
Small and Special
Small and special is a collection of resources relating to the early years of The Hospital for Sick Children at Great Ormond Street. Here, you can trace a relative or patient, learn about childhood diseases or discover the story of a member of the medical staff.
Small and Special includes a database of patient admission records - from the first in-patient records in 1852 to the last admission in 1914 - plus a collection of articles on the early history off the hospital and a gallery of images.
Browse the Small and Special web pages to discover its stories. Better still, register now. It costs nothing - and registered users get access to more detailed information and the ability to print and download the results of searches.
Join our foundation trust
This year we are planning to become an NHS Foundation Trust so that we can continue to improve the services we offer and ensure we have a better understanding of what our children and their families need. Becoming a Foundation Trust means that we will become a membership organisation, involving patients, families, staff and other interested parties in our long-term strategy and plans. We will also have more financial freedom - allowing us to make crucial decisions much more quickly.
Patients, relatives, supporters and anyone interested in child health are welcome to join our foundation trust and it’s free.
