Cricket match to raise funds for new A&E at Scunthorpe
Doctors at Scunthorpe hospital will be pitted against local GPs in a charity cricket match to raise money for facilities at the town's new A&E department.
The Health Tree Foundation (HTF) – the hospital’s official charity – launched an appeal last month to raise £70,000 for enhancements at our new Emergency Departments being built at Scunthorpe and Grimsby.
These facilities include:
- Mobile gaming units and interactive floors to help keep our younger patients amused while they’re waiting to be seen
- FREE mobile phone charging facilities to keep you entertained and in touch with your loved ones
- Sky Inside artificial skylight panels to help provide a more pleasant focal point for patients in our pediatric and resuscitation cubicles
- Screens which can be used as TVs and digital information screens.
The event will take place on Sunday August 8 from 10am, with the match starting at 11am, at Heslam Park in Scunthorpe.
There will be a number of family-friendly activities on the day including a live DJ playing music, a bouncy castle, raffles, a BBQ and an ice cream van. Those attending are asked to bring their own chairs and parasols. There will also be an appearance from a Disney Princess and a superhero, and Sergeant Shane Jackson, from Humberside Police, will be attending with a police vehicle for the children to explore
Dr Satpal Singh Shekhawat, medical director at North Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), is one of the organisers.
He said: “We first started doing this doctors vs GPs cricket match in 2019 and we raised £2,500 that year for Lindsey Lodge Hospice. Unfortunately, we couldn’t hold an event last year due to the pandemic. This year, we decided to choose to raise money for the Health Tree Foundation to go towards the A&E appeal.
“We will have 11 players on each team and it will be a 30 over match. We have been practicing for the last few months. It will be nice to let off some steam especially with the pressures of the last 18 months. It is also a good chance to spend time with colleagues and meet their families.
“Our ambition is to raise £3,000. When we hit crisis point, we rely on our hospital colleagues, predominantly in A&E. A lot of our GPs have done training in A&E and it is very close to all of us so we wanted the money to go towards these new facilities.”
The cost of installing all these facilities in the new Emergency Departments currently being built by the Trust in Grimsby and Scunthorpe is just £35,000 per site and it’s all been picked out by the Emergency Department staff based on what they see in A&E every day.
Emma Hartley, Scunthorpe’s community champion for HTF, said: “It is fantastic that our local doctors have come together to raise money for our A&E appeal. It promises to be a great day for all the family so please come along!”
Tickets are £5 per person and are available to purchase from Eventbrite.
If you want to organise an event, please contact the Health Tree Foundation via hello@healthtreefoundation.org.uk and they will provide details and a fundraising pack. You can donate to the HTF campaign via https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/AEGrimsby and https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/AEScunthorpe.
