insideSUSSEX Magazine Issue 08 - October 2015 | Page 96

CHARITY

Charity Profile:

Rockinghorse Children’s Charity

At Rockinghorse Children’s Charity, the aim is to improve the lives of
sick children throughout Sussex. Rockinghorse is the official fundraising
arm of the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital (the Alex) where they
raise money for life-saving and cutting-edge medical equipment, while
ensuring that children are treated in an environment better suited to their
needs. Rockinghorse also supports the Trevor Mann Baby Unit (TMBU)
based at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton and its sister
site, the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) at the Princess Royal Hospital in
Haywards Heath.

As well as specialist medical equipment, we also provide funding to help
ensure that children are treated in an environment better suited to their
needs – for example, toys, games and sensory items. Our support helps
ensure that children in Sussex receive the very best medical care as well
as improving the overall hospital experience for poorly children and their
families.
It’s difficult to put a figure on how many children have received help through
equipment and items we have funded, but what we do know is that over
45,000 young patients are treated at the Alex every year, most of them
coming in to contact with equipment and services funded by Rockinghorse.

Their guiding ethos, their mission statement, is: We believe no matter
where they are, children should always be allowed to be children.

We aim to raise around £500,000 every year in order to provide
equipment and services at the Alex, TMBU and SCBU in addition to
what the NHS will fund. Consultants seek funding from Rockinghorse for
projects they recognise would create a better environment for children to
be treated in, while at the same time helping to save lives.

Working in partnership with the Alex, TMBU and SCBU, Rockinghorse
strives to make services stimulating, cutting edge, and accessible for
the many babies, children, and teenagers who need them. They do not
receive any government funding and so they rely on the generous support
of individuals, community groups, companies and trusts; people like you.

Rockinghorse relies on the generosity of individuals, community groups,
companies and trusts to help raise funds. We have a team of four
fundraisers who work with local businesses, schools, community groups
and individuals on fundraising initiatives and events. We hold a number
of key charity events in Sussex each year, such as our Mid Summer Ball,
Best of British sporting lunch and Dress as an Elf day that supporters can
get involved in to help us raise funds. Many of our supporters will also
hold their own events of which we are the chosen beneficiary. Our next
event is a Halloween quiz which takes place in the Palm Court Restaurant
on Brighton Pier on Thursday 29th October – details can be found on our
website here: www.rockinghorse.org.uk/events/2015.

Recently, we asked Rockinghorse’s chief executive Ryan Heal and their
head of fundraising, Analiese Doctrove, to give us an insight about the
charity and what drives them to do what they do.
At Rockinghorse we aim to make life better for sick children in Sussex
by fundraising for life-saving and cutting-edge medical equipment, and
the services needed to support paediatric centres such as the Royal
Alexandra Children’s Hospital (the Alex) and the Trevor Mann Baby Unit
(TMBU) in Brighton as well as the Special Care Baby Unit based at the
Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath.

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