Mayor of Bolton Mohammed Ayub picks NHS Bolton as mayoral charity

Borough mayor, Cllr Mohammed Ayub, named NHS Bolton Charity as one of his mayoral charities when he was appointed in May.

And on Wednesday, July 19, Cllr Ayub was taken for a tour around Royal Bolton Hospital to see the difference that charity monies make.

He was shown around critical care, the neonatal unit, the paediatric unit and the newly transformed faith facilities.

On the tour at the neonatal ward (Image: Newsquest)

Cllr Ayub said: "They are our superheroes, such as what they did during Covid time.

"I had experience myself with the NHS, when my daughter had a kidney transplant she had a very good experience in hospital.

"The work that we can do to support them, a lot of extra work needs to be done, they do need our support." 

He added that it was "very nice" to have seen the difference that the monies make during the tour of the hospital. 

A quiet room for people to spend time in, with artwork paid for by charity monies (Image: Newsquest)

As well as the new faith facilities, other features paid for by the charity include incubators for neonatal babies, a portable gaming system for children at the hospital and artwork and furnishings for quiet rooms used by for patients, visitors and staff to use. 

The gaming machine is a new addition to the children's ward, donated using money raised by King's Leadership Academy. There are also Amazon Wishlists for items to be used in children's wards. 

Fiona Noden, CEO of Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, spoke about the impact charity funding has. 

She said: "A huge amount, NHS funding is extremely tight and we have to concentrate the services. Everything additional to NHS services makes such a difference to families, during a stay in hospital or during treatment at home.

Fiona Noden presenting Cllr Ayub with a certificate to commemorate his charity work for the hospital (Image: Bolton NHS FT)

"We have Ramadan packs, so that during Ramadan Muslim patients receive support so they can continue to follow it.

"It is the little things that make such a huge difference."

Sarah Skinner, charity manager at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, said: "It is so important, the NHS is here for everybody.

"It is the small creature comforts that makes hospital feel less intimidating, such as wellbeing facilities. 

The gaming machine, which was paid for with charity monies (Image: Newsquest)

"But there is still more we can do, there will always be something we can do."

To see the E5 Children's Ward wishlist visit https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/26H47G3BOMTGJ

The paediatric A&E wishlist can be seen at https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/23X1FE92SEG8I

To find out more about the Bolton NHS charity, visit: https://www.boltonft.nhs.uk/our-bolton-nhs-charity/