Our impact

The Leeds Centre for Newborn Care is one of the largest neonatal services in the UK, operating across two hospitals and looking after approximately 1,600 babies each year. 

Leeds Children's Hospital, Leeds General Infirmary site

At the Leeds Children's Hospital, Leeds General Infirmary site, they care for babies who require:

• intensive care
• surgery
• other specialist care 
  

Leeds Children's Hospital, St James' University Hospital site

At the Leeds Children's Hospital St James' University Hospital site, they provide:

• high dependency care for babies
• special care for babies
  

The babies cared for by the Leeds Centre for Newborn Care tend to have three sorts of problems:

Those born very early or too small

Those who are born with congenital anomalies 

Those who become ill around the time of birth

Testimonial from Dr Lawrence Miall, Consultant Neonatologist

"As one of the consultant neonatologists at Leeds Teaching Hospitals Centre for Newborn Care it has been a great privilege to work with Fiona and the whole team at The Friends of Alfie Martin charity to ensure that your donations really do make a difference to the babies and families that we care for. We are so grateful for the amazing support we get from the charity, which has been our single biggest donor over the last 20 years. 

Friends of Alfie Martin has funded a wide range of equipment that has allowed us to stay at the ‘cutting edge’ of neonatal care and have provided life-saving equipment that is in daily use on the neonatal intensive care unit at LGI and the special care baby unit at St James’s Hospital. Just a few examples include ‘cerebral function brain monitors’ that allow us to monitor the electrical activity in the brains of our poorliest babies; transport incubators and ventilators that allow us to provide portable intensive care to sick babies who are having to move between hospitals or go for surgery or scans within the hospital; and state of the art video-laryngoscopes that help us to insert breathing tubes in the most unwell or preterm babies to allow us to support their breathing. We have also benefited from two cardiac scanners that help diagnose babies with congenital heart disease from all over the Yorkshire and Humber region as well as a host of incubators, resuscitation platforms, ventilators, monitors and other intensive care equipment that has helped save many lives. 

The reality is that without these donations we would often be waiting years for the NHS to be able to fund these items, so the charity allows us to innovate and stay up to date as technology advances. 

You can be sure that your donations really will make a difference to the lives of our smallest and most vulnerable patients. Thank you on behalf of all the staff and patients of the neonatal service."

Testimonial from Debbie Smith, Matron of Leeds Centre for Newborn Care

Dear Friends of Alfie Martin,

The Leeds Neonatal Team would like to express our deepest gratitude for all the kind and generous donations to our service over the years. The donations have supported us to buy equipment, improve the surroundings at the cot side and upgrade the parent facilities. The generous donations enable us to deliver a high standard of care with the most up-to-date technology, which improves the outcomes and health of the babies in our care. 

Parents are key to ensuring the babies get stronger, tolerate feeds, are comfortable and feel safe, therefore it is important for us to care for parents too. Friends of Alfie Martin have enabled us to provide facilities for parents to look after their emotional and physical needs, in surroundings which are calming and fit for purpose. Additionally, they have facilitated a smooth transition to becoming a family at home, supporting equipment for our outreach nursing team. 

The hard work and dedication of the Friends of Alfie Martin charity make an invaluable difference to the care we deliver and the lives of our babies and their families. We thank them from the bottom of our hearts.

Debbie Smith 

Matron of Leeds Centre for Newborn Care

Testimonial from Nova Smith

"I can’t thank the Friends of Alfie Martin enough for the wonderful work they do raising funds for neonatal equipment within Yorkshire. My son Lukas was born at 25 weeks weighing 790g whilst we were on holiday in Cyprus. He was incubated on a neonatal ward in Nicosia until deemed fit enough to fly back to Leeds via a medically equipped plane in August 2010. I will never forget seeing a Friends of Alfie Martin plaque on the side of the incubator waiting to transfer Lukas safely to the Leeds General Infirmary.

Lukas is now a lively, active teenager.

The funds that the Alfie Martin charity raises, is undeniably helping to save the lives of premature babies within the Yorkshire region."

Nova Smith

Mum of premature born baby Lukas