One Direction Louis to become Bluebell Wood patron

ONE Direction singer Louis Tomlinson might be one fifth of one of the hottest boy bands on the planet but the South Yorkshire singer is proving he hasn’t forgotten where he comes from.

The 20-year-old singer has agreed to become a patron for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice and will be playing in a charity football match at Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster on 22nd October.

The impact of Louis’ support is already beginning to show its magnitude - since tweeting about his alliance with Bluebell Wood the number of followers on the charity’s Twitter site has gone through the roof.

Louis and his One Direction bandmates first visited the hospice last year while taking part in the X-Factor tour and was touched by the inspirational children he met and the hard-working staff.

He said: “It was really important for me to support a local charity. Bluebell Wood is such a great cause and I’m very proud to be able to help them with raising funds.”

Sarah Champion, chief executive of Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, added they were ‘absolutely thrilled’ that Louis is to be a patron and said it is fabulous to see him supporting a local charity.

“It costs £3 million per year to offer our service and we currently receive no statutory government funding. Without the help of supporters like Louis we simply couldn’t help the children that we do,” she said.

Louis is not the only chart topper to support Bluebell Wood - Brit Award winner Ed Sheeran is also a patron for the charity which supports and helps care for children with a shortened life expectancy.

The One Direction singer will be joining his old side The Three Horseshoes against Doncaster Rovers XI at the special match on 22nd October, with all proceeds going to Bluebell Wood.

Tickets for the football match can be bought online at www.online.keepmoatstadium.com or by calling the ticket hotline on 0844 3245590.

If you would like to support Louis but can’t attend the game go to his Justgiving page at www.justgiving.com/LouisTomlinsonFootballMatch or visit www.bluebellwood.org