Supporting people with severe epilepsy and learning disabilities to live life to the full...

St Elizabeth’s supports vulnerable children and adults of all ages who have severe epilepsy, other complex neurological conditions and/or learning disabilities.

We deliver high-quality individualised care, education, medical support and leisure opportunities, providing our residents and learners with a fully-accessible, safe and friendly space to flourish and to live life to the full.

Our service-users have a range of abilities – in terms of physical, learning and communication – and we are committed to embracing their skills and individuality.

Every year, St Elizabeth’s supports more than 200 children and adults.

St. Elizabeth's, your local charity

Did you know, St. Elizabeth’s is based just down the road from Bishop's Stortford, in Perry Green just next to Much Hadham? It’s based on a huge 68-acre site, and is home to a School and Care Home for children aged 5-19, a Further Education College (with residential provision) for young people aged 19-25, and a small “village” of bungalows providing residential care for over 100 adults.

We also offer respite care for families and a huge programme of activities for residents and learners to engage in – from music and crafts to outdoor activities and sports. We have a number of enterprise projects (an Art and Crafts Workshop, a Jewellery Workshop and an Orchard and Horticultural Project), where residents can participate in activities including seed sowing, fruit harvesting, egg production, painting, pottery and marketing, whilst learning a number of key skills and earning a small income.

All of our services are supported by an expert team of medical professionals – from specialist Epilepsy nurses and consultants, to physiotherapists, Speech and Language Therapists and clinical psychologists – who provide high quality medical care to keep our residents safe and healthy.

Our residents and learners have very high levels of need, and many require 1:1 support, 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. We have over 600 staff working at St. Elizabeth’s to provide the best level of support possible, making us one of the largest employers in Hertfordshire.

What is Epilepsy?

Over 600,000 people in the UK have epilepsy – the equivalent of one in every 103 people. It is one of the most common serious neurological conditions – 87 new cases are diagnosed every day in the UK.

Whilst most people who have epilepsy are able to manage the condition with the right medication, around one-in-five experience frequent uncontrolled seizures – some people can suffer up to 30 seizures a day and these can be life threatening: around 1,100 people die of epilepsy causes every year.

Someone with severe epilepsy is likely to have associated ‘complex needs’, including profound and multiple learning disabilities, impaired mobility, behavioural and emotional problems and speech and language difficulties.

Why do we need support?

It costs around £20m a year to run the Centre. We receive funding from Local Authorities to finance the essential basic costs of care, accommodation and education for individual service-users.

However, those referred to St Elizabeth's have extremely complex needs and require very specialist support and equipment. Meeting those needs can include buiding new or adapting existing facilities, or purchasing new equipment – and this is not covered by statutory sources. To ensure that we can keep our services and facilities as up-to-date and of the highest quality as possible – from sensory rooms and accessible playgrounds to medical systems and skills-development opportunities – we rely on generous donations from individual, groups and companies.

Every donation is used directly to improve facilities and services for the children, young people and adults cared for at St Elizabeth's.

How you can help?

There are lots of ways that you can support St Elizabeth's, including:

-          Make a donation: https://www.justgiving.com/stelizabeths

- Attend an Event: see here for upcoming events.

- Clear out your Cupboards and donate to one of our charity shops (in Thorley, Harlow (Staple Tye and Bush Fair), Ware, Braintree, Saffron Walden, Hoddesdon and Potters Bar).

- Volunteer – at one of our shops, at our events or in our office.

- Take on a Challenge Event – from the Marathon to a cycle ride or skydive – and raise sponsorship.

- Hold a community event – anything from a cake sale or a coffee morning to a raffle or car boot sale.

- Get your company involved – teams of volunteers from companies can spend a day doing maintenance work around the Centre.

Need more information?

Contact us on fundraising@stelizabeths.org.uk or call us on 01279 844355.

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