BRADFORD Hospitals’ unsung heroes have been honoured for 104,000 hours of dedicated volunteering.

The volunteers from Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were recognised at a special ceremony at Bradford City Football Club.

A 500-strong team of volunteers help out across the Trust, each of them donating on average four hours per week, and the special ceremony was an opportunity to present almost 90 of them with certificates and commemorative plaques for long service as well as to name the Volunteer of the Year 2016.

Competition for that award was so tough that judges made it a joint award, presented to Susan Blissett at St Luke’s Toy Library and Jeanette Sunderland who is an End of Life Companion as well as a Chaplaincy Volunteer with the Trust.

Mrs Blissett, from Cleckheaton helps on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Toy Library, which provides specialist resources for visually impaired children, after experiencing its help for her own daughter Tora who is registered blind.

“The Toy Library helped me immensely when Tora was diagnosed with her condition and so I just felt I wanted to give something back and get involved. It was a real surprise to win and I am delighted because I absolutely love volunteering and being able to help other families who are in a similar situation to myself is reward in itself,” she said.

Mrs Blissett shares the Volunteer of the Year Award with Jeanette Sunderland who has been volunteering since October 2015.

Ms Sunderland said: “It was a shock to win. I feel lucky because I am in a position to be able to give my time as a volunteer.

“Little things can make a real difference to patients in their last hours as well as their families during very difficult times, and to be part of that is very rewarding.”

The Trust’s chief executive, Professor Clive Kay, said: “There are many reasons why the dedication and compassion of our volunteers make such a difference to our hospitals – in fact there are more than 104,000 of them! Amazingly that’s the total number of hours of their own free time our team of volunteers has given up over the past 12 months to improve the experience of our patients.”

One volunteer who has devoted endless hours to the Trust is chairman of the Friends of BRI Trevor Constantine who has notched up an incredible two decades’ service as a volunteer.

Other recipients included hospital radio presenters, befrienders, chaplains and trolley hosts who bring care and a smile to patients on wards and at clinics.

Long service awards were also presented to volunteers with 15 years’, ten years’ and five years’ service.

Prof Kay also paid tribute to Val Destouche, a dedicated chaplaincy volunteer for many years, who died recently.

“Val was a very familiar face within the Trust. Our sincere condolences are sent to her family, friends and colleagues,” he said.

Anyone interested in volunteering, can ring 01274 364309/382860 or visit the Trust’s website www.bradfordhospitals.nhs.uk/about/staff

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