Festive visit for Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity families

Glasgow Warriors have visited the children currently in care at the Royal Hospital for Children this week ahead of their round two Investec Champions Cup match with Toulon on Sunday.

The annual visit arranged with the club’s charity partner, Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, is a highlight of the festive calendar. It’s an opportunity for players to see the work the hospital does, meeting the patients and families and brightening up what can be a tough time for many of them.

Glasgow Warriors co-captain Stafford McDowall, said: “It’s means a lot for the players to be able to visit the hospital each year and hopefully put a smile on some of the patients faces. To be able to see that all the money from the Plaster it Purple initiative is going to such a great cause makes all the hard work worthwhile.”

Glasgow and Scotland centre Huw Jones said: “Our visit to the children’s hospital is so important to us players. It puts everything into perspective around this time of year with all the festivities.

“We can often take our health for granted so seeing these brave kids fighting all sorts of battles with illness, and the toll it takes on their families, is eye opening. Even more so for those of us with kids of our own.

”We get to see the incredible work that the nurses and doctors are doing for these kids and we hope that our visit can provide a few moments of joy for all of them.”

Glasgow and Scotland prop Zander Fagerson said: “It is the highlight of our year when Christmas time rolls around.

“We try to spread Christmas cheer, talk about rugby, and try to help families unload their burden and give them a smile.”

We’ve got big plans for our next @GCH_Charity activity, raising money specifically for the Siobhan Cattigan Legacy of Love fund.

We’ll be in touch again next week, with the details for donating! pic.twitter.com/SMyfY5LUd8

— Glasgow Warriors (@GlasgowWarriors) December 10, 2024

Fighting for our Families

During the 2024/25 season Glasgow Warriors are on a mission to raise £85,000 for the charity. This is in an attempt to break all previous fundraising targets achieved before.

So far, the club has donated all proceeds from its new Autograph Books and collectible Champions Book to the hospital. The coaches and staff have also run the Great Scottish Run.

The next activity in the Fighting for our Families campaign, is a collection for Siobhan’s Legacy of Love. This is being held at Hampden Park on Sunday 22 December, ahead of the 1872 Cup clash with Edinburgh Rugby.

At that match, Glasgow Warriors are asking every ticket holder to consider donating at least £1 to that collection. There are currently more than 22,000 ticket holders.

Players have also been split into their four Clan groups and tasked with raising at least £2,500 per team. They are joining grassroots rugby clubs and sponsors in arranging their own Fighting for our Families activities. These activities will run ahead of the 2025 Plaster It Purple match in March, supported by Leidos.

So far, Ardrossan, Strathaven, Waysiders Drumpellier, and club sponsor Harper Macleod have signed up and have started running their activities. Clubs have until Friday 17 January to sign up to access benefits that can support their fundraising efforts. Sign up here.

The hospital’s Play programme

During the season, Glasgow Warriors are highlighting where the money they raise goes to, to give supporters a better understanding of the vital work being done, showcasing the value their donations provide.

Since the beginning of the partnership in 2018, fundraising by the club has gone to supporting the charity’s Play Team.

Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity is proud to fund an extensive play programme which provides young patients with invaluable entertainment and distractions whilst they’re in hospital.

The Play Team are always on hand with exciting arts and crafts projects, fun games to encourage movement, or even just to chat with our young patients and their families in the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow. Thanks to Glasgow Warriors support, this amazing team can create fun, therapeutic activities that help children cope with treatment and brighten their hospital stay.

A particular highlight for this team is the Play In Hospital Week during October. That week, the children had fun participating in different activities with the help of our play team such as potion making, playdough making, creating large playroom posters and adding balloons to the wall display in our atrium.

To show their appreciation, the charity surprised the Play Team with a special video message from patients and families. Click here to watch their reaction!