Norwich children's ward thefts

Jack Smith, four, his mother Gayle Larkman and grandmother Doreen Larkman.

ED FOSS
03 December 2009 14:00



When callous thieves ripped out and stole a set of hand held playstations which were providing entertainment for sick youngsters at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, there was a sense of utter disbelief.

But a woman whose grandson uses the specialist Jenny Lind department at the hospital since being diagnosed with leukaemia has shown her fighting spirit by organising a charity event to help replace the toys.

The Sony PSPs were taken from the outpatients area of the department on October 4.

They had been placed there as part of a recent hospital arts project makeover which saw waiting areas, clinic rooms and treatment rooms in the Jenny Lind outpatients, Jenny Lind physiotherapy and the children's assessment unit turned into a sea of colourful artwork.

For Doreen Larkman, who has recently moved to Norfolk to be near her grandson Jack Smith and his family because of the little boy's battle with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, diagnosed in August 2008, it was a shocking theft.

“I was shocked and dismayed that anybody could be so rotten to the core to steal from a department that provides treatment for such ill children,” said Mrs Larkman.

“We will raise as much as possible from this charity event and if we don't get enough to replace them all, I will make it an ongoing effort to get to the necessary total.

“If we could get £1,000 on Saturday I would be delighted.”

The charity fair will be held on Saturday at The Diplomat, the recently reopened pub at Badersfield which serves the homes at the former RAF Coltishall airbase. It will be called Spotlight on Badersfield and feature a range of handicrafts and cake stalls, a display by the craft section of the mothers and toddlers group, as well as trade stalls.

There will also be charity leg waxing and aromatherapy.

Although four-year-old Jack is now in remission, he still has to travel to the hospital on a regular basis for ongoing treatment and checks.

“People were obviously very upset by the thefts, it makes me wonder where people's morals are,” said Jack's mum Gayle Larkman, from Redfern Road, Heartsease.

“Jack used them every time he went there and they were very popular.

“I told my mum about it and she decided something needed to be done.”

The Spirit of Coltishall Association, formed to keep the memory of the airbase alive, has already donated one playstation.

The fair will run from noon until 5pm.

A hospital spokesman said the theft also damaged the unit to which the playstations were attached. Anyone with information can contact hospital security on 01603 289156 or the hospital's arts co-ordinator Emma Jarvis on 01603 287870.

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