Hilton hotels across the UK and Ireland will once again be inviting their guests to take part in their annual fundraising campaign for charity, ‘Small Change, Big Difference’.

An initiative of the Hilton in the Community Foundation, Hilton International’s charitable arm, the scheme involves the addition of an optional £1 or €1 to hotel guest’s bills when they stay at a Hilton hotel during the months of October, November and December. Last year, generous guests enabled this simple scheme to raise an incredible £172,000 for ChildLine in just two months!

In 2006, the campaign will raise money to support the wonderful work and support given to terminally ill children and their families by children’s hospices. Partnering with the Association of Children’s Hospices, the Small Change, Big Difference resulting total will be shared equally between every children’s hospice in the UK. In Ireland, the money raised will be donated to the first children’s hospice currently being founded in the country.

United Kingdom:
Children’s hospice services exist to provide specialist care and support for children who will not live to reach adulthood – and their families – from the moment of diagnosis onwards. They provide a range of specialist care and support under one roof or in the comfort of the family’s own home.

How will the donations make a Big Difference?

• The life-limited child will receive access to specialist physiotherapy to help maintain his or her movement and relieve discomfort
• Play specialists help with emotional and developmental support, helping children to understand the procedures and treatments they are experiencing
• Specialist nurses will relieve the parents of 24-hour care and give advice on how to manage the condition as it progresses
• Children’s hospices provide support to siblings, who often become carers themselves and may get less attention from their parents
• Parents receive a welcome break from the pressures of administering care, have a chance to meet other families in the same situation, and will learn first hand about the services on offer.

Ireland:
In Ireland, the Small Change, Big Difference campaign will help raise money to help in the creation of Ireland’s first dedicated children’s hospice. By supporting The Children’s Sunshine Home, the charity will be aided in its quest to provide palliative and respite care to hundreds of families in the specialist unit ‘Laura Lynn House’.

Children’s hospice services rely overwhelmingly on public support in order to continue to provide vital help and support to thousands of children and families each year. The donations raised will make a big difference to young people and families in need in Ireland.