Grants and Impact Newsletter
Welcome
Welcome to the latest edition of the Grants and Impact newsletter, showcasing the transformative impact that charitable funding makes across Alder Hey and beyond.
This newsletter will focus on second and third quarters of the 2025/26 financial year, from 1st July 2025 to December 31st 2025.
This newsletter provides an insight into how grants made by Alder Hey Children’s Charity are supporting transformational projects across the hospital community, improving care, experience and wellbeing for our children, young people, families, volunteers and staff.
The Grants and Impact team at the Charity work closely with colleagues from across the hospital to fund innovative, practical and compassionate projects. If you have an idea that could benefit from funding by the Charity, we would love to hear from you.
Together, we’re helping to make Alder Hey the very best it can be, and ensure that we strive to create brighter, healthier and happier futures for everyone who walks through its doors.
In this issue you will find:
A breakdown of grant spending in quarters two and three of 2025/26, across our funding pillars.
Highlights from recently funded projects.
Information on how to get in touch with the Grants and Impact team and how to apply for charitable funding.
In quarter two and three of 2025/26 we have...
Received and processed
120 applications Awarded
107 Grants
We have funded projects across the following charity pillars:
To the value of £1,467,180 Valued at £1,739,862 Equipment
Magic
28 Grants valued at £674,358
12 Grants valued at £338,548
Campus and Community
16 Grants valued at £85,344
Research, Innovation and Education
51 Grants valued at £368,930
The Dreamers Programme received £30,000 of funding
The Dreamers Programme
Helping
young people
‘grow
their
worlds’
The Dreamers Programme, which is part of Alder Hey’s wider Arts for Health programme, provides bespoke creative support for children and young people aged 8–18 who are receiving care through Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) across Liverpool and Sefton. Funded by Alder Hey Children’s Charity and delivered in partnership with a number of local institutions, this innovative programme uses a social prescribing model to match young people with creative activities that reflect their interests, strengths and aspirations alongside their clinical care.
Designed for those living with complex and enduring mental health conditions, the programme supports participants who often experience long periods of isolation from education, friendships, and everyday life. Through a series of up to ten one-to-one creative sessions, ranging from music and
theatre to visual arts, game design, and creative writing, the programme offers a safe and positive space to reconnect, build confidence, and rediscover joy.
through creativity felt more confident and less anxious after completing the programme. 89%
For many, the impact has been lifechanging. One 16-year-old participant shared that the sessions “helped me more than years of CBT ever did,” describing how the confidence gained through musicmaking enabled them to record and release their first single.
“The Dreamers Programme has helped me more than years of CBT ever did”
In its first eight months, 23 young people took part, with 19 completing the programme. Evaluation shows that 89% felt more confident and less anxious, 78% felt significantly more positive, and every participant reported learning new skills.
Many have gone on to continue their creative journeys in their local communities, taking hopeful steps towards brighter, happier, and more connected futures.
Safespace Beds
Improving safety, comfort and continuity of care
Safespace beds are transforming care for patients with complex behavioural and neurological needs during their time at Alder Hey. Funded by the Charity, six of these specialist beds were purchased - creating a calm, enclosed environment designed to improve emotional regulation, sleep quality and, crucially, patient safety.
Fully adaptable to individual needs, the beds offer a range of panel options and access points, helping staff to care for children safely while maintaining communication and dignity. For families whose children use similar beds at home, having access to Safespace beds in hospital provides vital reassurance. As one parent explained, being able to “zip her in and
know she’s not going to fall out offered peace of mind during an already stressful admission”.
Since their introduction, an estimated 50 patients have benefited, with staff reporting fewer incidents involving self-harm or distress-related behaviours and a reduced need for constant one-to-one supervision. Clinical teams also highlight the smoother transition between home and hospital care, with one staff member noting that patients, families and nurses are “all happier” as a result.
Now in use across various areas of the Trust, Safespace beds have become an invaluable part of caring for some of our most vulnerable patients.
Staff reported fewer incidents involving self-harm or distress-related behaviours. Safespace Beds received £55,408 of funding
PABL Project received £3,180 of
Postpartum After Baby Loss (PABL) Project
Supporting physical recovery alongside grief
The PABL Project at the Alder Centre provides a unique, trauma-informed service addressing an often-overlooked need: physical postpartum recovery after baby loss. While emotional support is vital, bereaved mothers are also navigating the physical changes of the postpartum period, something this pioneering project recognises and responds to with compassion.
Led by a specialist physiotherapist, the programme combines one-to-one assessments with gentle postpartum Pilates and peer support, creating a safe space where both body and grief can be acknowledged. One participant described the experience as “having space held for me,” highlighting how the
sessions supported both physical healing and emotional wellbeing.
In just six months, 13 bereaved mums were supported through 18 group sessions. Participants rated the physical benefits 9.4 out of 10, while emotional wellbeing scores rose from 3.3 to 9.6. Psychological distress reduced significantly, moving from moderate–severe to low levels.
As far as we are aware, this is the only in-person physical postpartum support service after baby loss in the UK. Its impact is already being felt beyond Alder Hey, influencing national bereavement care pathways and shaping new approaches to compassionate, holistic care.
Over the course of the programme, participant emotional wellbeing scores rose from 3.3 to 9.6.
Lyrebird Ambient AI
Transforming patient care through innovation
Alder Hey has successfully introduced Lyrebird, an innovative Ambient AI solution designed to reduce clinicians’ administrative burden and improve the experience of young people and families. Funded by the Charity, this technology automatically captures and generates clinical documentation during appointments, allowing clinicians to focus fully on their patients.
Since its introduction, the clinically led rollout of ambient voice technology has reduced administrative burden, improved documentation quality, and enabled clinicians to spend more time focusing on patients, with over 900 staff onboarded and more than 2,000 consultations supported each week with the new technology.
Traditionally, clinicians have had to divide their attention between listening to families and manually recording notes. Lyrebird removes this barrier, creating more natural, engaged conversations and helping children and families feel truly heard. 90% of patients surveyed said that clinicians gave them their full attention when Lyrebird was used, compared to just 53% when notes were taken manually.
By saving around 30 minutes per clinician each day, Lyrebird is also freeing up valuable time for research, education and patient care. This pioneering project demonstrates how charitable funding can drive meaningful innovation, improving outcomes for children and young people while supporting the wellbeing of our staff.
Lyrebird Project received £148,629 of funding
The rollout has already benefitted over 87,500 patients and 5,750 families.
The Grants and Impact Team are:
Alice Andrea Paula Hiba
For further information about our grant making, please visit the Alder Hey Children’s Charity section of My Alder Hey If you would like to contact us regarding a potential application, please get in touch via email:
grantgivingcharity@alderhey.nhs.uk
