Following tough competition Torbay’s League of Friends has been successful in its bid to be chosen as Charity of the Year by Sainsbury’s superstore in the Torquay.

Earlier this year Sainsbury’s 'Local Charity' scheme invited both employees and customers to select a local charity to support. Nominations were taken in the store at The Willows and from these staff through their Colleague Council selected three charities that they felt addressed local needs.  The three charities were then invited to present a ‘pitch’ to the Colleague Council who made the final decision that the Bay’s League of Friends would receive their backing for the year.

The Torbay Hospital League of Friends was set up in 1954 to provide amenities and services to support Torbay Hospital, and over the years it has become one of the leading Leagues in the country.  Over the last eighteen months the hospital has received gifts of well over £3 million from the League, and these have helped to advance the clinical techniques available locally to treat South Devon patients.  This includes the £1.5 million donation last autumn which enabled the hospital to purchase the da Vinci Si robot – the most advanced surgical robot in the world. The robot has helped to further advance the care that Torbay Hospital offers, and benefits several hundred patients year. Patients undergoing robot-assisted surgery experience less pain and discomfort caused by the surgery, less scarring, and make a quicker recovery.

Lynne Hookings, Chairman of Torbay’s League of Friends, said:  “This is absolutely wonderful news. Torbay’s League of Friends is already one of the most successful in

the country and with the backing of the local Sainsbury’s staff over the next year we can only go from strength to strength.  We have already drawn up a variety of joint fundraising events and hopefully there is something that will appeal to all. We are particularly hoping the ‘Tu’ fashion show and Santa Saunter will attract a lot of interest.”

Paula Vasco-Knight, Chief Executive of South Devon Healthcare Foundation Trust, which manages Torbay Hospital said: “It is fantastic that Sainsbury’s have chosen to

back our League of Friends.  We are very proud of the ongoing work that they do for the hospital and our patients.”

Kiri Bigwood, Customer Services Manager and Colleague Council representative at Torquay Sainsbury’s store said: “We saw some great nominations from local charities bidding to be our Charity of the Year – the quality of applications was really high. We were really impressed by the professionalism of the League of Friends and its history of strong partnership with the hospital.  Nearly all our staff have either been treated at Torbay Hospital, or have friends or relatives that have, so we felt that the League of Friends is a charity that we could really get behind, making a difference for the whole community living in the Bay.”