My Blog

This treasured local Charity was set up by public meeting in Henley in 1955 and is still run by local Trustees as a purely voluntary body.

Funding comes from small annual membership subscriptions, social fundraising events, donations and legacies. 

We focus on carefully considered purchases and initiatives to help augment the provision of “one stop`’ medical services at our valued Community Hospital and to enhance the “patient experience”.

Our Committee includes medical representatives who help appraise the quality of any bids to our fund.

Recently funded items are a treadmill, ultrasound scanner, bladder scanner, neurological and ophthalmic equipment.

We also funded production of a Townlands patient services brochure and refreshments for the free Health Talks provided in the Hospital for the local community.

If you’d be interested to join us, our Committee meets up to 4 times a year, including an Annual General Meeting.

For 2020, we need to recruit a qualified Accountant to prepare the Annual Springtime Audit of our Accounts (drafted by our Hon Treasurer) and a new Chairperson to take over during the year.

All enquiries, please call Judith Nimmo-Smith (Chair of Trustees) on 07930 581732

It seems a long time since I last posted anything about the Hospital, largely because of the delays in starting and finishing it, and then the subsequent delays in getting things working well in the provision of services, which would apply to any organisation supporting the complexities of delivering the wide range of services that it does.

I am happy to report that the Hospital goes from strength to strength, and The FRIENDS OF TOWNLANDS stand ready to respond to those local requirements that can so improve the personal experience of those using the services the hospital provides.

Our first donation to the Hospital resulted from the Treasurers use of the Physiotherapy Department after having a new knee in April 2016. I asked them if there was any equipment lacking in the department that would make a difference, and they immediately said "Treadmill". The Friends agreed to purchase the treadmill on behalf of the Hospital and it has been a resounding success.

Our second donation was the bladder scanner and trolley in 2017 for the Urology Dept, which means that the visiting consultant can have equipment at his disposal that would normally be available at the John Radcliffe or The Royal Berks.

Additionally in the local Bell Surgery, we have supported educational talks by consultants covering a wide field of disciplines, which started in 2017 and continues in 2018.