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When Steve Allen, Frank Fielding and Donna Venables first walked through the doors of Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW) with an idea of raising funds for CHSW’s Charlton Farm hospice we could never have predicated what would ensue.

Children's Hospice South West has received £579 from Waitrose’s green disc scheme, which supports local charities.

Wendy Pollard (left), chairman of Wellington Friends Group CHSW, is pictured receiving a cheque for that sum from Rebecca Dawkins, the town store’s community liaison officer.

Wendy thanks the supermarket and its customers for the donation.

Source:  Wellington Today

King Edward’s School in Bath has presented a cheque to the Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW) for £10,000, following a year of fundraising by pupils and staff at the school.

It is the school’s largest ever charity presentation and includes a donation by KES Parents, the school’s parent-led body who fund raise on the school’s behalf, and run events throughout the year including the popular Christmas Fair.

Sweet fans have helped a business to raise £100,000 for a Wraxall charity.

Sweet company, Snak Appeal, has raised the impressive amount for Children’s Hospice South West.

Snak Appeal was set up in 2008 to raise money for charities by selling sweets and treats.

Pictured: Brad, Christine, Sue and John from Snak Appeal handing the donation to Janey from Children's Hospice South West.

The Light up a Life services give families an opportunity to celebrate and remember those who cannot be with us.

Emma and Mark Smale from Bideford lost their daughter Imogen in March aged just four-years-old.

They cannot ever thank the Children’s Hospice South West team at Little Bridge House enough for what they did for Imogen but also the whole family.

"He's looked after by nurses and has all his very complex needs taken care of and is given all his fluids and medicines. You get a chance to recharge your batteries and get that breather you need to carry on. The hospice has been a massive support.

"Samantha and I tend to do a lot of visits to the hospice together and we can do normal mum things like have a glass of wine, chill out and chat – things we don't get much chance to do otherwise. We get to be mums. Without the hospice we wouldn't survive."

A children’s hospice in Wraxall is hoping to entice former nurses back into the field by offering to pay for a return to work course.

Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW) is offering the incentive to tackle the nationwide shortage of nurses in children’s palliative care.

The lack of staff has been affecting the care available to children with life limiting conditions, but CHSW wants to show how rewarding the role can be.

There are more than 50,000 children and young people in the UK who are expected to have short lives and the number is rising. These children have complex and unpredictable health conditions and rely on qualified children’s nurses with the right skills to provide palliative care and symptom management. Yet there is currently a shortage of children’s palliative care nurses and this is already having a negative impact on the care provided to children and families.

To be forced to watch one child slowly die is an unbearable pain no parent should ever have to experience. But to have two daughters diagnosed with a terminal condition seems an incredibly cruel twist of fate.

Amazingly Abida Ahmed, from Lockleaze, is battling through the horrific trauma; yet she manages to care for herself, her three other children, and even cooks for her friends and neighbours on a regular basis.

When her daughter Hadiya was six months old she was diagnosed with a rare brain condition called GA-1, which affected proteins in her body.