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NICU ARCHITECTS APPOINTED - 26/06/2008

The Royal United Hospital and The Forever Friends Appeal announce today that after an extensive tendering process, internationally renowned, local architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios have been appointed, subject to contract, as design team for the brand new sustainable Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for the hospital. The Forever Friends Appeal charity, based at the RUH, launched the NICU ‘space to grow’ Campaign back in July 2007 to raise £4.7 million to fund this new building.

Tim Hobbs, Head of Fundraising for The Forever Friends Appeal, says: “We are absolutely delighted that Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios have been awarded this appointment, as they have a really comprehensive track record with sustainable design. We are therefore very much looking forward to working with them on this ground breaking new project!”

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, The Forever Friends Appeal and the RUH are enthusiastic to be heading into this next exciting stage. They expect to be busy over the summer months developing the final designs of this innovative project that will be at the forefront in the development of Neonatal Intensive Care. This will act as a model for development in the care of premature and sick babies all across the UK.

Matt Vaudin, of Feilden Clegg Bradley says: “We’re thrilled to be selected. Both our practice and Buro Happold, the engineers, are based in Bath; we’re part of the local community and this is a project that’s dear to our hearts.”

Having just reached the £1 million mark of the NICU ‘space to grow’ Campaign, the Appeal are working hard towards raising the next million in order to get closer to their aim of giving a better first home to the premature and desperately ill babies that rely on the care they receive in the unit. The RUH has a great reputation for saving the lives of its smallest, most vulnerable patients and NICU cares for one in every 10 babies born in our area. However, the currently cramped and inadequate conditions in the unit make this care extremely difficult, which is why The Forever Friends Appeal have launched this campaign to build a new unit. A pioneering holistic and therapeutic approach towards this new building will therefore create a new low carbon unit that will allow the staff in the unit to practice new methods of care and give these tiny babies an even better chance at life.

Bernie Marden, Consultant Paediatrician for NICU comments: “We are very excited to have the opportunity to work with the dynamic and enthusiastic team from Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, who have shown such support for the unit and the Appeal, and have such strong understanding of the needs of the NICU staff, babies and their families ”.

The forthcoming Summer Concerts on Bath Rec over the weekend of 4th, 5th and 6th July are all part of the fundraising process for The Forever Friends Appeal’s NICU ‘space to grow’ Campaign. Tickets are available for Meatloaf on Friday 4th, Katie Melua on Saturday 5th and Boyzone on Sunday 6th, by contacting Ticketline 0871 424 4444 (24 hour plus booking fee), Ticketmaster 0844 576 5483 (24 hour plus booking fee) or Bath Festivals Box Office on 01225 463362 (24 hour plus booking fee), Bath Festivals Box Office, 2 Church Street, Abbey Green, Bath (Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5.30pm with no booking fee to personal callers paying by cash or cheque).

THE FOREVER FRIENDS APPEAL’S SUMMER CONCERTS - 27/02/2008

The Forever Friends Appeal, charity for Bath’s Royal United Hospital (RUH) are excited to announce the first headline act of one of three summer concerts taking place at Bath’s Recreation Ground on the 4th, 5th and 6th July 2008. Performing on Sunday 6th July, the finale night of this spectacular musical weekend, Boyzone, the famous Irish boy band will be joining Bath’s citizens as part of their reunion tour. Boyzone have joined together with the Appeal, other artists and various promoter partners to help benefit the Appeal’s NICU ‘space to grow’ Campaign which aims to improve facilities for the premature and desperately ill babies at the RUH. Tickets are on sale and are available from the Bath Festivals Box Office.

Jo Hones, Events and Community Officer at the Appeal says: “We are so delighted to be holding our summer concerts on the Rec again this year and we would love to have all of Bath there to enjoy them with us. This will be Boyzone’s first tour after their split 8 years ago, so it really should be a brilliant night. There are two more exciting acts yet to be announced, so really do keep your eyes peeled in the next couple of weeks to discover who else will be visiting Bath to help the RUH’s tiniest and most venerable patients.”

The Appeal’s NICU ‘space to grow’ Campaign aims to raise £4.7 million over the next two to three years to fund an urgently needed brand new sustainable Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. One in ten babies are born prematurely or seriously ill and need to be cared for in NICU, with some babies staying in the unit for up to 6 months. 500 babies are treated in the unit each year, but the existing unit is too small to cope with modern day demands. The clinical care in the unit is amongst the best available, however the unit is incredibly cramped with noisy conditions and a severe lack of privacy, making the care of tiny babies extremely difficult.

This new unit will be calm, spacious, and purpose built to accommodate the 21 cots and the medical equipment needed for the specialist care of babies. It will be the very first of its kind to be designed, built and operated with sustainability in mind, creating a light and spacious environment for our vulnerable babies and of course, their parents. Such an environment is proven to be highly beneficial to babies, parents and staff – ensuring the best possible outcomes for every patient.

Tim Hobbs, Head of Fundraising for The Forever Friends Appeal, says: “After our previous summer concerts in 2005 and 2006 which were held to benefit the Appeal’s CT scanner campaign, we are delighted to be working with our promoter partners again in 2008 to bring these concerts to Bath. It will be a wonderful opportunity to raise the profile of the NICU ‘space to grow’ campaign as well as helping to raise funds towards our goal.”

Mr Hobbs continues: “We are arranging for companies and members of the public to be able to make use of the hospitality boxes in the Bath Rugby’s Hampton Stand. These can be booked by calling Nina Rack at the Appeal office on 01225 825392.”