Local Mum and Dad run half marathon in support of Children’s Ward at Macclesfield Hospital

The Children’s Ward at Macclesfield Hospital will benefit from over £1,400 thanks to the efforts of two grateful parents.

Stewart and Charley Bothamley recently completed the Manchester Half Marathon after their son Marley, 2, was treated at the hospital when he contracted chicken pox and scarlet fever at the same time.

Marley's infection was so bad he had cellulitis and was a few hours away from major surgery. He was kept in hospital for five days and then had to visit every other day for a further six weeks.

Stewart’s aim was to complete the half marathon in an hour and a half and smashed this target, completing the race in 1 hour and 27 minutes. Charley also completed the race in a brilliant time of 2 hours and 12 seconds.

The family visited the Children’s Ward to present the amazing donation and met with Claire Finley, Ward Manager and staff on the unit.

Claire said, “Stewart and his family have done an amazing job in fundraising for the ward in such a short space of time. The cheque for £1,400 will help both patient and family centred care, thank you so much to all who donated!”

Stewart said, “The team on the Children's Ward were incredible throughout the whole process. Knowing we were raising money for such a great cause really pushed myself and Charley and the rest of the team from 5ONE Fitness, to make the best times they could on the day. Marley was so excited to wear the medals afterwards.”

Lily Preston, Fundraising Manager at East Cheshire NHS Charity said, “Congratulations to both Charley and Stewart. We’re so pleased to hear that Marley is doing so well and the high standard of care he received on the Children’s Ward. Thank you to both Stewart and Charley and to everyone who has donated to their fundraising.”

If you’d like to get involved in fundraising for East Cheshire NHS Charity, as an individual, group or workplace, get in touch with the fundraising team ecn-tr.ecnhscharity@nhs.net or visit https://eastcheshirenhscharity.org/

Picture caption

1. Stewart, Charley, Marley and Claire Finley and staff from the Children’s Ward at Macclesfield Hospital

Notes for editors

• For further information about East Cheshire NHS Trust, contact the trust press office on 01625 663935 between the hours of 9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday.
• East Cheshire NHS Trust is the main provider of acute and community health services for the people of East Cheshire. The trust is based at Macclesfield District General Hospital.
• Follow East Cheshire NHS Trust on Twitter for all the latest news @EastCheshireNHS
• East Cheshire NHS Charity is the official charity of East Cheshire NHS Trust. We raise money for Macclesfield District General Hospital, Knutsford Community Hospital, Congleton War Memorial Hospital and all our community services.
• East Cheshire NHS Charity goes above and beyond standard Government funding to make your local NHS that extra special. From supporting staff health and wellbeing to providing toys to brighten up our young patients’ days to making long stay patients feel more at home – our mission is to make a visible difference. You can make a donation to the charity on JustGiving here.