enfinium, a leading UK energy from waste operator, has donated £5,000 to Theodora Children’s Charity, enabling young patients at Leeds Children’s Hospital to experience more visits from ‘Giggle Doctors’ over 2025.
Theodora Children’s Charity supports the mental health and wellbeing of children living with illness, disability and serious health challenges through its long-running ‘Giggle Doctor’ programme, which sees specially-trained professional performers visit hospitals and specialist care centres across England to play and interact with children one-to-one through a range of musical, storytelling, and fun activities.
Giggle Doctors have been visiting Leeds Children’s Hospital since 2014, and in that time have brought joy, laughter, and magical moments to thousands of children and their families. Beyond making hospitals a more welcoming place for younger patients, Giggle Doctors provide opportunities for play that are often limited in medical settings but recognised as essential for children’s development, as well as offering proven physical and mental health benefits for young patients undergoing treatment. Theodora Children’s Charity has been supporting children with illness, disability and serious health challenges through power of laughter and play in this way for 30 years.
enfinium’s support will fund up to 9 Giggle Doctor visits, helping reduce stress, anxiety, and isolation for young patients, and creating opportunities for play for 360 children in the hospital.
The grant has been awarded as part of a £50,000 Community Benefit Fund, made available to community groups and organisations in Leeds during the construction phase of enfinium’s Skelton Grange energy from waste facility, which is scheduled for completion in 2025.
Ellen Blessington, Senior Community and Communications Fundraiser at Theodora Children’s Charity said: “We are extremely grateful to enfinium for awarding this grant to our charity. Children needing specialist treatment can often spend weeks or even months away from their family and friends, resulting in feelings of loneliness and boredom. It also means they miss out on opportunities to play, which is such an important part of childhood. The Giggle Doctors have a transformative and lasting impact on a child’s wellbeing. The positive atmosphere even extends to the parents and NHS staff on the ward – after all laughter is catching! Thanks to the funding from enfinium we can provide even more Giggle Doctor visits and spread even more joy.”
Dan James, Plant Manager at enfinium, said: “We will always be committed to being a good neighbour to the communities in which we operate. We’re so pleased to be supporting the amazing work that Theodora Children’s Charity is doing with Giggle Doctors to improve the wellbeing of children at Leeds Children’s Hospital.”
Applications to enfinium’s Community Benefit Fund are still open and will be accepted from projects or organisations that will directly benefit the communities neighbouring the facility’s site. Organisations who are based outside of this area are also eligible to apply for grants, as long as they can prove how the award of funding will have a beneficial impact on these communities. Applications are welcomed from registered charities, schools, places of learning, not-for-profit companies, community organisations and groups – including those supported by public funding.
All applications must demonstrate that the project or event in question will either deliver environmental benefits (such as the promotion of clean energy, waste reduction and/or recycling improvements), improve standards of health, safety and wellbeing, or enhance the wider community. This could mean promoting skills and educational development, environmental improvements, or activity that helps promote community cohesion.
Application criteria and application forms can be downloaded from the project website: www.enfinium.co.uk/facilities/skelton-grange. For more information, please call 0800 422 0036 or email skeltongrange@enfinium.co.uk.
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About enfinium
enfinium is a leading UK energy from waste operator with four operational sites in the UK, in West Yorkshire, Kent and Flintshire, and two in construction. enfinium diverts 2.3 million tonnes of unrecyclable waste from climate-damaging landfill, putting it to good use by turning it into home grown energy, enough to power 500,000 UK homes. enfinium’s ambition is to transform its facilities into local ‘decarbonisation hubs’ powered by the millions of tonnes of unrecyclable waste the UK will produce for decades to come. Using existing energy from waste infrastructure, enfinium could contribute to heat networks, produce electrolytic hydrogen, or use carbon capture technology to provide durable, high quality carbon removals which will be critical for the UK to achieve net zero by 2050. For more on enfinium, please visit www.enfinium.co.uk.
