Children's hospital celebrates 25th birthday

The UK's first purpose-built children's hospital is celebrating 25 years since it opened.

Bristol Royal Hospital for Children (BRHC) has been treating children and young people in the city and South West since 2001.

The purpose-built facility on Upper Maudlin Street replaced the older St Michael's Hill site, with the opening ceremony performed by The Prince of Wales. This year also marks the 160th anniversary of having a children's hospital in Bristol.

Anniversary celebrations kicked off earlier with Wallace & Gromit visiting the hospital, and a special delivery of hundreds of 25th birthday cupcakes for hospital staff.

The hospital was the first of its kind in the UK when it opened in 2001. It is home to the only dedicated children's emergency department in the South West and is the children's major trauma centre for the region.

BRHC covers the largest geographic area of any children's hospital in the UK. Last year alone, the hospital saw over 164,000 patients and carried out 12,731 medical procedures.

It cost £30m to build, with £12m of that coming from the Grand Appeal's Wallace and Gromit themed "Wrong Trouser Day" fundraiser.

The Grand Appeal continues to fund more than 100 projects every year, and also pays for and runs three family accommodation houses, and manages arts, music and play programmes.

Nicola Masters, director of the Grand Appeal, said the charity has raised almost £100m to date.

"When children are in hospital, especially for a long time, distraction becomes really important and is really part of their recovery and rehabilitation," she said.

Their next project is a patient hotel nearby, the first of its kind in the UK.

Martin Gargan, consultant paediatric orthopaedic and trauma surgeon at the BRHC said he is proud of the work the hospital does.

"As someone who operated on the day of opening 25 years ago, I've had the privilege of seeing the hospital, teams, treatment and care develop enormously in that time," he said.

Gargan acknowledged some of the challenges that the hospital has faced - particularly the Bristol heart inquiry - a public investigation into high death rates among babies undergoing cardiac surgery at the Bristol Royal Infirmary between 1984 and 1995.

Gargan said the hospital has since learned from the findings of the inquiry and improved clinical practice.

"All I can say now, if you look at our heart data now, we're up there with the best," he said.

"If your child has a heart problem, Bristol is the place to be."

Director of nursing Rachel Hughes said she has enjoyed watching the hospital develop throughout the years.

"I cannot get over how much we've changed. We're a major trauma centre now, the advances in all medical nursing treatments, the different roles, the development opportunities, it's a humungous change and it's absolutely brilliant for our patient and family population.

She said there are "not enough words" to thank the Grand Appeal for their support.

"They are a unique and integral charity to the children's hospital. We're genuinely indebted for their help over the years.

"They are very visionary, and they know the direction of travel that we need to go in," she added.

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