NEWLIFE Foundation, the UK’s leading charity provider of equipment for children with disabilities, is urgently appealing for help so children in Essex can receive the equipment they desperately need.

Right now there are 18 children with disabilities or terminal illness in Essex who are at risk of worsening pain, injury or their condition deteriorating – while their families are placed under additional pressure. They need your help to get the specialist equipment that will really change their lives.

Newlife has already helped 174 children in Essex, spending £254,498, but the charity has seen a 25 per cent increase in applications this year compared to last year and has no budget at this time to help meet the needs of these 18 children.

Newlife needs to raise £15,313 in Essex to help children like Ruby-Mo who needs a specialist car seat. She has a complex chromosomal abnormality which is life limiting and has breathing problems. Ruby-Mo has already been admitted to hospital 35 times with chest infections and has been ventilated four times. She is tube fed and isn’t able to roll or crawl, but she has some head control which has improved over time.

A structured chair will help her breathing and to be much more upright, while being fully supported so she can take part in more activities at home, school and at the hospice she attends.

Equipment has the power to change lives, just like Rosie Yarnold and her family. Four-year-old Rosie needs a specialist car seat. That’s why the charity launched the Newlife Essex fund -www.newlifecharity.co.uk/essex. Equipment has the power to change lives, just like Rosie and her family.

Newlife guarantees 100% of any donation or funds raised will be used to help children within the county receive the equipment they need for everyday life.

A simple piece of specialist equipment is keeping Rosie and her family safe during journeys to hospital and clinic appointments. Rosie, from Stanstead in Essex, has Downs Syndrome and low muscle tone. She urgently needs a specialist car seat to keep her secure during journeys.

Mum Teresa Yarnold says: “Rosie was too tall for her old car seat, and she was able to wriggle out of the harness; then she just wanted to climb over the seats into the front. She has no awareness of danger and that put at risk the safety of everyone in the car, including her two-year-old brother Thomas.

“A booster seat is the logical progression for three-year-olds. But we have tried Rosie in one and she was able to get out in a split second.

“We needed a specialist car seat with five-point harness and secondary straps to ensure Rosie stays in the seat – and is therefore safe during all journeys. But ‘special needs’ equipment comes at a massive price. It’s hard enough coping with her condition without fighting for the equipment we really need.”

Statutory funding is not available for specialist car seats, and the cost of the equipment for Rosie – £599 – prompted the family to turn to Newlife Foundation for help.

Teresa added: “Because the specialist seating is a bit like a chair, I am hoping that Rosie will be able to climb into it by herself, giving her a bit of independence. It would make her so much more excited about going in the car if she could get into her seat by herself, like her two-year-old brother.”

Equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, beds, seating and communication aids can help give children independence, keep them safe, relieve pain and overcome challenges. For instance you could help a child be discharged from hospital, take their first steps or kick a football with their friends.

Helping children with disabilities or terminal illness could not be easier. Simply log on to www.newlifecharity.co.uk/(county) and click ‘donate now’. You could take part in a local sporting challenge, organise a ‘sparkle party’ (we can tell you how!), if you are crafty you can make and sell items for Newlife, bake cakes or do something wacky – like sit in a bath of baked beans or jump out of a plane! If you know of a local business, company, society, that could help then please let them know about Newlife – and that we need their help.

Newlife Foundation for Disabled Children CEO Sheila Brown, OBE, said: “Many of the children waiting are experiencing pain, isolation and a lack of independence which affects their quality of life. That’s why we are asking local people to help their local children.”

For more information about how to donate or raise funds in your county please contact Nathan by email at [email protected] or call 01543 462777.