THE Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire made a special visit to a charity dedicated to improving heart care.
Nigel Atkinson pledged to continue his support to Heartbeat when visiting Rotary Heartbeat House in Tremona Road, Southampton.
The Lord-Lieutenant was welcomed by the Heartbeat team before he joined the weekly coffee morning with some of the Heartbeat residents and trustees.
The house provides free accommodation to families of patients being treated at the Wessex Cardiac Unit at the University Hospital Southampton. The 25-bedroom home is funded by Heartbeat and offers respite, support, and care for the families of patients who come from the Wessex region and beyond.
READ MORE: Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire presents National Honours
Heartbeat has been supported by the Lord-Lieutenant and the charity’s patron, The Duchess of Edinburgh, for more than 20 years. Both attended the charity’s 30th anniversary celebrations at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton last September.
Mark Ind, Heartbeat CEO, said: “We were delighted to welcome the Lord-Lieutenant to Rotary Heartbeat House and share with him what the charity has achieved over the years and how we are evolving for the future.
“Our core purpose as a charity is to provide a home-from-home for the relatives of patients who have serious invasive cardiac surgery at the University Hospital Southampton, and we also fund and fundraise against pioneering research and projects coming out of the Wessex Cardiac Unit, often centred around the fast-moving growth of technology.
“We are keen to continue to raise awareness of what we do to support many communities across the South of England with both reactive and preventative cardiac care, which in turn we hope will raise further income to keep improving Heartbeat House and fund more life-changing projects.”
Mr Atkinson was given a tour of Rotary Heartbeat House, guided by charity CEO Mark Ind and chair of the board of trustees, Nigel Scarfe.
The Lord-Lieutenant was struck by the house’s full capacity and the extensive reach of patients referred to the Wessex Cardiac Unit at the University Hospital Southampton for invasive cardiac surgery.
The Lord-Lieutenant said: “I was delighted to have had a tour and speak to not just the Heartbeat team but to have spoken with some of the residents who were staying in the house. It’s good to see the inspiring work the charity is doing.”
SEE ALSO: Homelessness community shares success stories for 15th anniversary year
The house, which costs more than £87,000 run a year, had more than 360 residents last year.
CEO Mr Ind said: “We are always blown away by our donors; every donation we receive goes directly into one of our projects or towards running the house. We’ve recently been able to install new carpets along corridors and stairwells, which we needed to do, and it’s hopefully added to making a stay here more comfortable.”
The Lord-Lieutenant heard of the charity’s plans for the next three years which include a mass participation event with the local community next year, the funding of new projects in conjunction with the Wessex Cardiac Unit and further collaboration with the businesses in Hampshire, Dorset, and the Isle of Wight.
For more information on Heartbeat, go to heartbeat.co.uk.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here