NHS workers’ spare pennies are heaven for Julia’s House

Local NHS staff at Dorset HealthCare have raised more than £20,000 for children’s hospice Julia’s House by donating spare pennies from their monthly pay.

This milestone amount was raised over the last 12 years through the Pennies from Heaven scheme. The scheme rounds down people’s take-home pay to the nearest pound, diverting any surplus pennies to a good cause.

The money will make a huge difference to the local hospice, which for 20 years has been providing clinical, practical and emotional support for families caring for a child with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition.

Mike Bartlett, Deputy CEO at Julia’s House, said:

“Some parents liken having a child with a life-limiting condition to being on a permanent rollercoaster, when even a typical day can suddenly become a terrifying blue-light ambulance journey to the hospital.

“We are there to help families with the most challenging and toughest of days, as well as being there to ensure they’re able to make the most of every day. And our respite care enables them to rest, spend time with other siblings, go out as a family or even have a date night – not easy when you are caring 24/7.

“This highly individual and vital care wouldn’t be there without the support of amazing people like the staff at Dorset HealthCare. This kind of regular income over a long period of time is invaluable to Julia's House, especially during tough economic times. A huge thank-you goes from these families and everyone at Julia’s House.”

Leanne Mercer, Staff Benefits Co-ordinator at the Trust, said:

“Our staff pick three charities each year to support, and Julia’s House is chosen each time – it’s a fantastic charity which supports the child and the family. We are pleased we can make a difference to a very worthy local cause and be part of something doing good.

“Pennies from Heaven is such an easy way for our staff to donate to charity without really noticing. Each month any spare pennies from their pay gets deducted and goes into the charity pot. We would recommend more local organisations take part to fundraise for charity in a really simple way.”

In total Dorset HealthCare has raised more than £49,000 for various charities through the scheme. And this achievement has earned the Trust a gold award quality mark from Pennies from Heaven, which demonstrates dedication and support to society.

For more information about Pennies from Heaven visit www.penniesfromheaven.co.uk, while details on Julia’s House are available at www.juliashouse.org/