Christmas lights ‘switch on’ to mark Trust’s 30th Birthday
South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust is delighted to announce that its Charity’s annual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony will take place on the Trust’s 30th birthday, Thursday 12 December.
Staff, patients, carers and our wider community are all invited to come together to celebrate and reflect on the Trust’s history and heritage and raise money for the Charity’s winter appeal.
The event will take place at 5pm in Chapel Square at Springfield Hospital, where a beautifully lit Christmas tree will take pride of place. Chapel Square is part of the new Springfield Village, a stigma-breaking community at the Trust headquarters, centred around modern mental health facilities and including more than 800 new homes, shops and a 32-acre public park.
For the Trust Charity, the event marks the start of the festive season and is an occasion for people to don their Christmas jumpers and come together for some yuletide carol singing, hot drinks and mince pies.
The Charity continues to spread the festive cheer by joining hands with mental health charity MoMark to deliver its first Winter Appeal. The ‘We Care Christmas Gift Campaign’ will run from 1 November to 25 December and all funds raised at the event will be donated to this worthy cause.
As the festive season can be a trying time for patients who need to be in hospital, the Charity is appealing to those who are able to donate to ensure that every patient gets to open a ‘We Care Christmas Gift’ on Christmas Day. A donation of just £5 will fund an entire gift bag for a patient.
Ian Garlington, Better Communities Director, said:
For those looking to support a good cause this Christmas, and for a chance to attend a dazzling Christmas lights switch-on event, we are extending a warm invitation to our local community to join us at this festive fundraising event. All contributions will go towards our Winter Appeal, which will help us bring some much-needed joy and comfort to our patients on Christmas Day. This year’s event is extra special as we mark our Trust’s 30th birthday!
South West London and St George’s was first established in 1994 as The Pathfinder National Health Service NHS Trust before changing to its current name in 1999. So much more has changed over the past three decades – across local NHS sites and services, as well in terms of attitudes to mental health and mental illness. The Trust’s upcoming birthday serves an opportunity to reflect on its past, future and to celebrate its staff, volunteers, patients and carers.
Overall, the Trust serves 1.2m people across the boroughs of Kingston, Merton, Richmond, Sutton, and Wandsworth. It supports one of the most diverse populations in London and this is reflected in its workforce of nearly 2,800 staff.
Across its 120 clinical teams it provides care to 70,000 people in South West London at any given time. The Trust is committed to addressing entrenched health inequalities and becoming actively anti-racist. It aspires to work hand in hand with communities, patients and their carers through co-production and engagement.
Find out more about the event and make a donation to the Trust charity today.
For more information contact charitablefunds@swlstg.nhs.uk
