Gas Boost For Scrabo Children’s Centre
26th November 2008
Scrabo Children’s Centre at Ards Hospital has received a powerful boost from the Energy for Children Charitable Trust, the natural gas industry Charity set up to raise money for local disadvantaged children.
Two sensory islands have been purchased for the Centre that will now help to aid the development of children who suffer from cerebral palsy and autism.
The purchases were prompted in the short-term specifically to help two young boys who attend the Centre, three-year-old Jacob Adair and two-year-old Curtis Marshall, both of whom suffer from cerebral palsy. Elizabeth Campbell, Occupational Therapist at the Centre, believes the sensory islands will help give them stimulation, enjoyment and relaxation in order to get better engagement with them and to stimulate their brains.
Mrs Campbell reflected:
"Both boys have difficulty with movement and hence engagement in play is severely limited. The sensory islands are a great addition for us here at the Centre, as they offer a variety of sensory experiences - auditory, visual and tactile".
Cerebral Palsy is most commonly the result of a failure of a part of the brain to develop, either before birth or in early childhood.
Joyclyn Madden of Phoenix Natural Gas recently visited the Children's Centre to see the staff receive the sensory islands. Joyclyn, who lives in Ards, was pleased to see the Charity make such a difference to the lives of those kids who need help the most. She commented: "It was great to see the boys so fascinated by the new sensory islands and they certainly seemed to have a calming effect on them".
The Energy for Children Charitable Trust was founded on the principle that all money raised goes directly to local needy children and young people. Behind the scenes Phoenix Natural Gas provides all administrative support.
Pic (L-R): Little Jacob Adair (3) and Curtis Marshall (2) are joined by Joyclyn Madden of Phoenix Natural Gas and Elizabeth Campbell from Scrabo Children's Centre.