In 2016 Severn Hospice was chosen as one of three finalists in Tesco’s Bags of Help competition to win a grant of up to £12,000. Bags of Help offers community groups and projects in around 400 regions across the UK a share of revenue generated from the 5p charge levied on single-use carrier bags.

We appealed to the public, asking them to help us build a play area at our hospice site in Telford by voting in specific Tesco stores. The new play area will provide a place for visiting children and their families to create a place for play and escape at the most difficult of times.

Of the three finalists in the running to receive one of three grants amounting to £8,000, £10,000 and £12,000 to fund a community project, our hospice received the largest number of votes and therefore the top grant.

We were announced as the winner in our region in November of last year and work has swiftly begun on developing and planning our new play area. We will be working with our volunteers to create a fun place where children can play, with wildlife habitats for them to explore and fun equipment for them to play on. We are looking forward to seeing the project take shape and would like to thank everyone that voted for us in Tesco stores.