Pod Children's Charity (registered as Pod Charitable Trust no: 279743) is a British

non-profit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

, which provides live entertainment for children in

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

and

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life by ...

s throughout the UK.Pod Charitable Trust
BBC Children in Need

History and overview

Pod Children's Charity was founded in 1977 by David Jamilly, after he organized small parties with music and entertainment for children and noticed a positive effect which those have on them. Pod Charity started their shows at

Great Ormond Street Hospital Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospital ...

, one of the London's largest children's hospitals. At that time, hospitals were rarely child oriented and had restricted visiting times. In 1981 Margaret Munford became administrator for Pod and was awarded an

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

in 2012 for services to Pod Children's Charity. Pod employs professional children's

entertainers Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousand ...

, such as puppeteers, clowns and musicians, who perform in the playroom, on the ward or at the bedside.Providing the feel good factor

Nursing Standard ''Nursing Standard'' is a weekly professional magazine that contains peer-reviewed articles and research, news, and career information for the nursing field. The magazine was founded in 1987. It is published by RCNi. The magazine is abstracted and ...

, 14 August/Volume 10/Number 47/1996 Pod organises over 2500 performances at over 150 hospitals and hospices across the UK.

Aim

Pod aims to alleviate the trauma of

stay by sowing the seeds of

fun Fun is defined by the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' as "Light-hearted pleasure, enjoyment, or amusement; boisterous joviality or merrymaking; entertainment". Etymology and usage The word ''fun'' is associated with sports, entertaining medi ...

laughter Laughter is a pleasant physical reaction and emotion consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system. It is a response to certain external or internal stimuli. Laughter ...

and feeling better.

The League of Friends of Pod Charitable Trust

The League of Friends of The POD Charitable Trust (Charity no: 296119) is an entirely separate organisation, which covers all of Pod Charitable Trust’s administrative costs. Any donations to Pod Children's Charity go directly to entertaining children in hospital.The League of Friends of The POD Charitable Trust
at Charity Commission

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official Website
Children's charities based in England Health charities in the United Kingdom 1977 establishments in the United Kingdom

History and overview

Aim

The League of Friends of Pod Charitable Trust

See also

References

External links