Exclusive web gallery |  | Noel Edmonds and
Sophie Johnson | |
Noel's house warming partyTV personality Noel Edmonds gets an exclusive first look inside the new children's hospice nearing completion in the village of Wraxall near Bristol. Accompanying him on a tour of the new facilities is 13-year-old Sophie Johnson, from Montacute in Somerset. She currently uses the sister hospice at Little Bridge House in Devon. Fund raising success story| Fact File | There are 1,000 + children with life-limiting diseases in the West and South West.
Little Bridge House in Devon, which has been open for 11 years, currently helps 200 children and their families each year by providing respite and palliative care.
The charity running the hospice is entirely voluntary funded at present, although there are plans for around 5% of the running costs to come from the government over the coming three years.
Charlton Farm will provide a home from home environment providing support to sick children and their families throughout the area.
Open days at Charlton Farm will run from November 2006 to March 2007 to thank supporters and show them what their money has paid for.
The charity needs to raise approximately £6m a year in order run both Little Bridge House and Charlton Farm. |
Sophie suffered from a bout of meningitis when she was just 15-days-old, and although she recovered to lead a near-normal life, her condition started to worsen four years ago. She now has severe immobility issues.
However, this doesnt stop her from being one of the most popular girls in her village, having been crowned Carnival Queen a few years ago. "The Babe Appeal" has raised millions of pounds to build the new centre, but more money is still needed to pay for the running costs.
Much of the money has come from listeners to BBC Radio Bristol who went to extraordinary lengths to ensure the project got off the ground. You can still make your donation through the charity's website Links relating to this story:The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites |  | | Inside Out Archive | Inside Out: West
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Inside Out - West: Monday September 25, 2006