Skegness woman's appeal brings Christmas to children's ward

Heather Nicholls was contacted by hospital staff in September, having collected donations of toys for the ward last year.

Staff came up with the idea of decorating the ward for Christmas, and enlisted the help of the 36-year-old.

Heather put out an appeal on the Skegness Toy Bank Facebook page highlighting the types of decorations that were needed.

Around £1,000 of decorations were purchased by people and donated to the cause.

Heather said: “The people of Skegness have shown huge generosity in buying beautiful gifts and toys.”

She set up the Skegness Toy Bank last year to collect donations of quality toys.

The appeal saw tags placed in businesses around Skegness. Each tag told the buyer if the present was for a boy or girl, as well as giving an age.

It proved so popular that more 1,000 toys were purchased, with the donations split between the children’s ward and Boston Women’s Aid.

This year’s appeal saw Heather ask for princess glitter Nutcracker statues, reindeer toys and fairy lights – all of which are now in place at the hospital, giving the ward a festive feel in the run-up to Christmas.

Heather took the decorations to Boston Pilgrim last month for staff to decorate the ward just in time for Christmas.

Heather said: “I am really happy with the success of the second year.”

If you would like to be involved with future toy bank appeals, email Heather at [email protected]. Alternatively, search for Skegness Toy Bank on Facebook.