Staff have donated over 150 handmade, new-born baby hats to the Colchester General Hospital’s Maternity Unit. Staff have been busy knitting and crocheting the hats which are given to all babies born at the hospital.
Led by knitting expert Melissa Pumfrett from our Wills, Life Planning and Probate team and using wool supplied by the firm, staff organised lunch hour sessions to work on making as many baby hats as possible before the firm’s annual Christmas Jumper charity day in December. Some were there to learn, some to improve and some to rekindle their love for knitting. All were there to donate what they made and the final count of items included 161 baby hats along with other items including baby booties, blankets and an array of knitted toys.
The Colchester Hospital baby unit is incredibly busy, delivering over 3600 babies every year. In 2016, the Colchester Hospital University foundation Trust was the first in East Anglia to launch the Baby Box programme which relies on donations for its continued success.
Many members of the FJG staff, their partners, family and friends have given birth in Colchester Hospital and have received hats for their new-borns. Some have also required the specialist services of the neonatal unit, so this was a cause many staff were delighted to support in recompense for the excellent care they received.
Paula Fowler, Managing Partner commented: “It’s great to see the staff come together for such a fantastic cause and to see the wide array of knitted and crocheted items ready for donation, is fantastic. I am very proud of the staff and their efforts.”
Melissa Pumfrett, commented: “It is so wonderful to see the final selection of items to donate. It is amazing to think that just a few short weeks ago some of the people who made these items had never knitted or crocheted before.”
Along with the donation to the hospital, we are also supporting the Colchester Night Shelter Advent appeal collecting various items for homeless. Also, instead of printing Christmas cards, we’re running a 12 days of Christmas charitable campaign where the firm will be donating 12 cheques to 12 different charities across Essex in December.