Evelina London staff delighted to attend Royal carol service hosted by Princess of Wales

Five members of staff from Evelina London were invited to attend a special Royal carol service at Westminster Abbey.

The Princess of Wales, who is a patron of Evelina London, hosted her fourth 'Together at Christmas' carol service on Friday 6 December. Supported by the Royal Foundation, this event aimed to highlight individuals across the UK who have gone above and beyond to support their local communities through acts of 'kindness and empathy'.

Members of staff from Evelina London were invited to the event in recognition of their significant contribution in caring for children and young people. This included:

• Maxine Ovens, play services manager
• Felicitas Kanu, health visitor
• Nick Fordham, consultant paediatric haematologist
• Ewa Benevides, matron
• Elaine Brown-Messias, patient access coordinator

We spoke to 2 members of staff who were delighted to attend the Royal carol service.

Maxine Ovens was nominated to attend the event due to her significant efforts in setting up a 7 day per week play service at Royal Brompton Hospital. Play services use therapeutic techniques to help children cope with potentially distressing experiences they may have while in hospital, such as blood tests or operations.

Maxine said: "Our play service helps ensure that children have the best possible hospital experience. This includes a wide range of activities from running workshops that help children manage their anxiety to providing entertainment that supports child wellbeing. This can be especially important during the festive period, as we want children to be able to have a happy and stress-free Christmas.

"I was surprised and a bit emotional when I found out that I’d been invited to the carol service at Westminster Abbey. I’m really thankful to The Princess of Wales for her invitation and acknowledging the important work that our play services do."

Felicitas Kanu, a health visitor for community services, was nominated in recognition of her compassion and dedication in helping vulnerable children and families across Lambeth. As a health visitor, Felicitas supports families and vulnerable children to access the Healthy Child Programme. This programme includes essential health services – such as health and developmental reviews, screening tests and immunisations – to ensure that every child can have the best start in life.

"As a health visitor, I support vulnerable families to access a range of health services for their children. I carry out a holistic approach during assessments, signposting them to services in meeting their health needs for better outcomes. I love the experience of holding their hand through their parenthood journey and seeing them come out the other side smiling.

"I nearly cried when I found out that I would be attending the carol service. Our team is such a diverse group of people who are all committed to helping vulnerable families. It felt incredible to have my hard work in supporting these families recognised."

Gubby Ayida, Chief Executive at Evelina London, said: "We are grateful to our patron, The Princess of Wales, for inviting members of our staff to this special carol service. I am hugely proud of the compassion and dedication shown by our teams and their commitment to go above and beyond to provide exceptional care to our children, young people and families."

Evelina London provides specialist care for children at the purpose-built Evelina London Children’s Hospital as well as Royal Brompton Hospital and Harefield Hospital, and delivers children’s community services for families in Lambeth and Southwark. It is part of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

The carol service was filmed for broadcast and will air in the UK as part of a special programme on ITV1 and ITVX on Christmas Eve.