The Children’s Hospital Charity launched its 20th anniversary snowflakes celebrations in style this week, by bringing the iconic campaign to a brand new location at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
The switch on event, held at The Library Venue on Tuesday 26 November, brought together sponsors, supporters, and representatives from the charity, Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
Sheffield Steelers Head Coach, Aaron Fox, and his daughter led the countdown and switch-on, lighting up the Spaces Sheffield G1 Building with 20 sparkling snowflakes, sponsored by partners at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park and other local and regional organisations.
This year’s campaign will help raise £2 million towards the build of the National Centre for Child Health Technology (NCCHT), a global first facility due to start construction at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park in early 2025. The NCCHT will focus on addressing some of the biggest health challenges of our time including obesity, mental health problems, long-term conditions, health inequalities, disabilities and cancer. The aim is for the NCCHT to leverage advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and digital health tools to improve outcomes for children worldwide and provide a healthier future for children and young people.
Tchad Western, Chief Fun Officer at The Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “The snowflake campaign has been a tradition for 20 years and has so far raised over £2.5 million for Sheffield Children’s. We’re thrilled to bring this celebration to Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park for the first time, helping us take a significant step towards building the National Centre for Child Health Technology. The generosity of our community continues to inspire us, and we are extremely grateful to all the snowflakes sponsors and to everyone who joined us on the night.”
Attendees had the opportunity to meet with representatives from The Children’s Hospital Charity and Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, including Professor Paul Dimitri, Director of Research and Innovation at Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, who provided an overview of the vision for the NCCHT.
Claire Fretwell, Operations Manager at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, said: “It’s been wonderful to bring the snowflakes to Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park and a privilege to play a part in supporting The Children’s Hospital Charity and the National Centre for Child Health Technology.
“To have so many sponsors and supporters in our first year is fantastic, and really reflects the collaborative nature of the Park partners and wider community. A big thank you to all the sponsors for their support and to Spaces Sheffield for hosting the snowflakes and to The Library Venue for hosting the switch on event.”
Thank you to all the organisations supporting the first year of snowflakes at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park: Airwalk Reply – Canon Medical Systems – Finally Agency – Kingsbury – LivingCare Medical Diagnostic Centre – LNS Turbo UK Ltd – Manufacturing Technologies Association – Medilink North of England – Pryor Marking Technology – Sheffield Hallam University – SJ & HJ – SSS Super Alloys – Star Micronics GB Ltd – The Scarborough Group Foundation – UK Steel Enterprise Ltd – UTC Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park – Westfield Health – Wild PR
Find out more about the snowflakes fundraising campaign: https://www.tchc.org.uk/get-involved/snowflakes/
