The sensory play areas at Bristol Children’s Hospital have undergone an extensive renovation to meet the growing demand for specialist sensory facilities, thanks to funding from Bristol Children’s Hospital Charity, The Grand Appeal, and construction recruitment agency, Kingston Barnes, through Above & Beyond.

Costing around £28,000, the project has been funded thanks to £20,000 of funding from The Grand Appeal and a fundraising donation of £8,000 from Kingston Barnes.

As part of a twenty-year-long partnership supporting arts, music and play at the hospital, The Grand Appeal’s renovation includes the installation of a range of interactive sensory play equipment, such as colour-washing light projections and a new control panel, to enable the Grand Appeal Sensory Play Practitioner to easily adapt sessions to each child’s specialist needs.

A new outdoor space has been created which features a range of sensory activities including a full body support swing, a water feature and interactive light and sound panels.

Sensory play is an essential part of a child’s development, and is particularly effective for children with disabilities and special needs, helping them develop important life skills including colour recognition, vocalisation and motor skills.

Sensory play can also act as an essential outlet for children who are in pain, distressed or anxious about their stay in hospital. As a major trauma centre for the entire South West region, and a leading paediatric neurosurgery centre, the hospital cares for many patients with a range of complex additional needs which require specialist sensory support.

The Grand Appeal Sensory Play Practitioner Marius works with a range of children aged zero-to-seventeen years with sensory needs across all specialties, employing a patient-centred approach and provides individually tailored sensory sessions, including visual, tactile and auditory activities.

One child to benefit from the expanded sensory play area is Seb, a three-year-old from Cornwall, who has Medulloblastoma, a type of malignant brain tumour. After the successful removal of his brain tumour, Seb acquired Posterior Fossa Syndrome, a group of neurological symptoms that can occur primarily in children after brain tumour surgery.

Seb’s mother, Abby, said: “When it became clear Seb had Posterior Fossa Syndrome, it was incredibly hard for me and his dad. He lost a lot of his cognitive and physical abilities, such as walking, talking and swallowing.

“However, thanks to the incredible teams at Bristol children’s hospital, he has made massive progress and the sensory play room and outdoor space has played a huge role in that. Nothing beats seeing his beaming smile during the sessions, something that for a while, we weren’t sure we would see again. We’ll be forever grateful to the amazing hospital teams who have helped our little boy so much.”

Play Services Manager, Lynne Barlow, who worked in the play centre for over twenty years, led the project before retiring at the end of May. She said: “Sensory play can make such a difference to young patients and siblings with additional needs. As the leading specialist children’s hospital in the South West, we are seeing more and more children with a larger range of additional needs, so having a dedicated, new and improved sensory space is vital.

“We are so lucky to have a long-standing partnership with The Grand Appeal, whose support enables us to offer a wide range of play, arts and music activities throughout the hospital, and we are grateful to Kingston Barnes for their fantastic fundraising efforts.”

James Kingston, Managing Director of Kingston Barnes, said: “We are thrilled to have helped fund the sensory play area at the children’s hospital by raising money through golf days, a family fun fair and completing an Ironman challenge. We’ve fundraised as a team and have really enjoyed working together to fundraise for Above & Beyond.”