Make a Monthly Playtime Donation
A Monthly Playtime Donation
Many of you know just how important playtime is while going through a stem cell transplant. After 34 years of the Bubble Foundation providing toys and games for our little superheroes going through bone marrow and stem cell transplants - we've set up a way for you to give directly to a special playtime fund.
Many people prefer to help by funding toys for the children - so this one is just for you. Donations start at £2 per month and you can even opt-in for playtime updates via a special email from the ward - just make sure you click yes to the Bubble Foundation getting in touch.
You must use the Playtime Hero / Playtime Promise donation box to be added to our playtime hero list where we can allocate your funds.
You can read the FAQ's here
If you would prefer to donate to our general fund which includes things like immune deficiency research and emergency funds etc... you can click here
What your monthly coins will provide
Your monthly coins will help provide the team on Ward 3 with:
Toys and games
Arts, crafts and creative activities
Sensory and comfort items
Tablets, apps and digital entertainment
Books and audiobooks
Distraction and calming resources for treatment days
Reward charts, bedside activities
And much more
Every child’s needs are different and can vary month to month. Your support helps ensure that playtime is ready for children when they need it most.
Play shouldn’t stop at a hospital door
Children having stem-cell transplants and intensive treatment can spend months isolated in a hospital room, away from family, friends, school and home comforts. For many, childhood suddenly becomes blood tests, chemotherapy, procedures and long days inside a single room.
But in the hardest moments, play truly matters.
Play helps children feel more like children. It brings comfort during frightening procedures, distraction during pain, confidence during recovery and moments of joy in long periods of isolation. Play also helps children explain their feelings.
We help the amazing staff on Ward 3 continue to deliver exceptional care by providing toys, games and activities, distraction and moments of childhood.
By becoming a Playtime Hero, you help fund our Playtime Promise: a simple commitment that children arriving on Ward 3 will have play, comfort and moments of childhood waiting for them. For as little as £2 a month, you can help keep that promise going - and you can receive our special playtime letters via email (make sure you opt in!)
Did you know that only 51 heroes giving 12 coins per month could help sustain the Playtime Promise?
Play helps with recovery
Play isn’t just about maintaining a childhood in hospital, there are benefits for a child's recovery.
Play is much more than entertainment for children in hospital. Children can struggle to explain fear, pain or anxiety in words, especially during long and difficult treatment, so play becomes an important way for them to express feelings, regain confidence and make sense of unfamiliar experiences. Through games, role play, arts, sensory activities and imaginative play, children can communicate emotions that might otherwise go unspoken.
Research has also shown that therapeutic play in hospital settings can reduce anxiety, lower distress around medical procedures, improve cooperation with treatment and even help reduce pain, all of which can support emotional wellbeing and recovery. In simple terms, play helps children feel more like children at a time when life feels anything but normal.
Alongside our 30+ years of experience supporting hospital play, there's a growing body of research demonstrating its benefits for children in hospital. Read more here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32751225/
Did you know that 204 heroes giving £3 a month could help sustain the Playtime Promise?
Why monthly giving matters
Chemotherapy, stem cell transplants and recovery can take months out of a childhood.
Monthly giving helps us plan ahead, respond quickly and make sure children continue receiving play throughout their long treatment journeys.
Instead of reacting when supplies run low and allocating funds, your support helps us make a reliable monthly promise to children and families that play materials will always be there.
Become a Playtime Hero
Give a small monthly gift and help children going through transplant find strength through play.
The power of play
Play helps children feel more like children during long and difficult hospital stays. It can reduce anxiety, distract from pain, ease fear around treatment and help children process big emotions in ways that feel safe and familiar. For babies, sensory play supports comfort, development and bonding.
Just as importantly, play gives parents and carers moments to breathe. Knowing their child is engaged, comforted and supported can offer reassurance and, when needed, a chance to step away briefly to recharge so they can stay strong for their child.
Through monthly giving, your coins help fund toys, games, crafts and sensory activities on Ward 3, creating moments of comfort, confidence and joy for children and families when they need them most.
A note from parents:
“Play was important on the ward because it allowed Lexi to relax, have fun and connect in a different way with people involved in her care. The play team were really important in helping Lexi find her voice (as a teenager) and advocate for her own needs.
Play was really important on the ward as it allowed Lexi to express herself, and also offered some escapism from what was happening.”
You can read more about Lexi here
“The play team is Instrumental to Seannas mental health through play, but also to help her understanding of her needs for things like an ng tube and nasal prongs for her oxygen as well as understanding what was going on with her hair loss, she’s built up such an amazing relationship with Sarah and Kayleigh , Kayleigh talked through the reasoning of the hair loss with the journey of transplant; and had an amazing story called princess lilly and the hair fairy which helped seanna process and understand what was going on and why. Sarah absolutely brightens Seannas day when she sees her; and it makes such a difference to her morale, everyday I get asked when is Sarah coming in to play with her; seanna even made Sarah a magic wand with the glitter that the hair fairy left her as a present 🥹 Cannot thank the team in general enough for supporting Seanna. but the play team has been instrumental in helping seanna process scary things as well as keeping her spirits up through playing”
You can read more about Seanna here
“Charlie was only a newborn but the play therapy the team provided was beautiful - care, love and sensory dark dens. Lights, music and stimulation! I was pleased his little brain was being stimulated amongst all the medical drama! X”
“2004…Ward 23 Newcastle General ...Paula was a godsend 🩷
She was a vital and much loved member of Matthew’s care team..even on his lowest days he made an effort for Paula 🥰❤️”
“The importance of play on the ward was essential for Jasper’s mental and physical well-being. On the hardest of days, we as parents knew the importance of needing to move; Jasper just didn’t want to hear it from us as his parents. Yet, the play team ladies were all amazing, making it fun and exciting, and not forgetting the lovely ladies from physiotherapy who made Jasper's sessions fun and engaging to ensure that his body was moving and no bed sores were to come to light. Thank you ladies.“
You can read more about Jasper here
“When Abbie was on the ward in 2020, Kayleigh and Laura were the highlight of our day, for that hour it was ‘normal’ we sat and had a chat and completed a bit of craft, it was a much needed respite from everything else that was going on. I didn’t understand how vital the role was to the ward, until being on the ward. Though their role is a whole lot bigger than just playing, it’s huge 🩷🩷🩷🩷”
-
The importance of play
Become a Playtime Hero for children facing chemotherapy and transplants. Help us make a monthly playtime promise to seriously ill children on Ward 3 that they’ll...
Read more: The importance of play -
Jaspers Journey Cinema Night Donates Gifts Ward 3
Become a Playtime Hero for children facing chemotherapy and transplants. Help us make a monthly playtime promise to seriously ill children on Ward 3 that they’ll...
Read more: Jaspers Journey Cinema Night Donates Gifts Ward 3
A note from the specialists
The Play Team on Ward 3 or the Great North Children’s Hospital: (Coming soon)
Insights from clinicians about the role of play during treatment (coming soon)
Playtime Promise FAQ's
What happens if more is raised?
This campaign is dedicated to funding play on Ward 3. However, children’s individual needs vary throughout the year, and we also sometimes receive toys and play resources as direct gifts, which can affect our stock levels and immediate requirements that month.
If donations do exceed our current playtime estimate, funds will help sustain future play provision and support wider child and family wellbeing projects on Ward 3, ensuring your donation continues to make a difference where it is needed most.
Why is it a £2 minimum? Can I give less? Unfortunately the system we use (JustGiving) only allows £2 as a minimum. There is a longer online form if you choose to give less than £2. It can be found below but isn't linked to this campaign:
Why should I choose gift aid?
Eligible UK donations can be increased by 25% at no extra cost to you through something called Gift Aid. For example, a £2 monthly donation could become £2.50 as the UK government adds on that extra 25% - helping more children access play during treatment.
We claim Gift Aid separately through HMRC and it can take time to reach the charity, so it is not included within our campaign target. Once received, Gift Aid can help support the wider work of The Bubble Foundation and the children and families we care for.
JustGiving
The Bubble Foundation uses JustGiving for monthly giving as it provides a secure and trusted donation platform while reducing administrative and technical overheads for the charity. It links directly with the database and collects Gift-Aid automatically.
Supporters may notice an optional tip to JustGiving during the donation process. This contribution is optional and can be adjusted or removed by clicking on the amount and adjusting the slider.
How is the playtime cost estimated?
We reviewed our previous years’ spending with our lovely Treasurer Neil - we looked at toys, games, activities and services used specifically on Ward 3 to understand the cost of providing play throughout the year.
As children’s needs change and new play opportunities become available, we will continue to monitor and update these costs to ensure our estimates remain accurate.
Why are we doing this playtime campaign?
The Bubble Foundation was founded in 1992 in Newcastle, growing from the specialist Bubble Unit established at the local hospitals in 1987.
We started because there was a simple but vital need: children spending long periods on the ward still needed opportunities to play, smile and experience moments of childhood. As the Bubble Foundation developed and we learned more about these complex conditions, our support expanded to fund essential equipment and pioneering research that has helped transform outcomes for children.
Research and advances in treatment have helped survival rates improve from around 6 in 10 children making it home to around 9 in 10.
But we never want to lose sight of why we started. The need for play has never gone away. Toys, games and activities remain an important part of helping children cope with treatment, providing comfort, distraction and a sense of normality during some of their hardest days.
That’s why we created the Playtime Promise: to ensure play continues to be available for every child on Ward 3, now and in the future.
We also wanted to give supporters the choice to see exactly what their generous donations help make possible, with the opportunity to receive updates specifically about the difference their support is making.
Thank you
Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this, we are always a message away for any other questions. 💙🫧