Polly's Pad, the free bungalow for parents of children in Basildon Hospital, has reopened after a refurbishment paid for by a £10,000 grant.

Parents with a child in Basildon Hospital can once again stay a few steps from the ward, free of charge. Polly’s Pad, the hospital’s family bungalow, has reopened after a full refurbishment.

The work was paid for by a £10,000 grant from The Kusuma Trust to Mid and South Essex Hospitals Charity. The hospital trust announced the reopening on 7 October.

What Polly’s Pad offers

The trust describes the bungalow as a home-from-home for families. It has:

  • three bedrooms, each with a shower room
  • a shared living area
  • kitchen facilities

Stays cost nothing. Rooms are allocated through the hospital’s Children’s and Neonatal Units, so families do not book them directly. The charity funds and maintains the bungalow.

The point is to take away the cost and strain of travelling in and out, or paying for a hotel, while a child is being treated.

Jerusha Murdoch-Kelly, the trust’s Deputy Director of Nursing for Paediatrics and Neonates, said: “Polly’s Pad gives families the opportunity to spend time together when their child is in hospital in a home-from-home environment. It allows parents and carers to rest while still being close by.”

Lucy Thomas-Clayton, Director of Mid and South Essex Hospitals Charity, said the reopening followed “a lot of work behind the scenes”. She added: “Having a child in hospital can be overwhelming for families.”

Volunteers did the garden

The outside got attention too. In the summer, staff from the Beaverbrooks jewellery shop at Lakeside, about ten miles south-west in Thurrock, spent a day at the bungalow while their own store was being refitted.

According to the trust’s account of that day, they:

  • cleared the outdoor areas
  • jet-washed paving and painted fences and walls
  • planted flowers
  • turned an unused corner into a usable space
A group of volunteers in casual clothes and two hospital staff in uniform standing on a freshly jet-washed patio in front of a dark wooden fence, with a pressure washer and broom.
Volunteers from Beaverbrooks Lakeside with hospital staff in the Polly's Pad garden. Photo: supplied by Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust

A busy week on the children’s ward

The reopening came days before Play in Healthcare Week, from 5 to 9 October. The trust says Basildon Hospital’s play team put on a week of activities for young patients, including a therapy dog, a magician, storytelling, a visit from Bluey and Peppa Pig, and a Friday night pizza party.

Health play specialists also prepare children for surgery and help them through procedures. Lisa Kawa-Akenbo, the trust’s Lead Health Play Specialist, said: “We can’t change why a child is in hospital, but we can help make their time here a little less worrying.”

What it means for you

  • If your child is admitted to the children’s ward or the neonatal unit at Basildon Hospital and you live some distance away, ask the ward team about Polly’s Pad. Places are allocated by the units, not booked online.
  • It is free. There is no charge for a stay.
  • If you want to help, the bungalow is run entirely on donations to Mid and South Essex Hospitals Charity, which also funds projects at Southend and Broomfield hospitals.

The hospital is also expanding its emergency department: see our report on the £6m A&E upgrade at Basildon Hospital.