A Manchester charity that helps to save and improve the lives of sick children has received a boost of more than £12,000 from accounting and business advisory firm HURST.

MedEquip4Kids, which provides hospitals and community health teams with paediatric medical equipment and facilities not available from limited NHS resources, was HURST’s charity of the year for 2018.

Staff raised a total of £12,250 and their efforts have helped fund an upgrade to the children’s emergency department at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, including colourful new seating to brighten the waiting area and new equipment to diagnose and assess patients’ conditions.

HURST’s donation has also funded additional resources for children and adolescent mental health teams, including reference books for parents, picture books for children, stress toys and games and diagnostic kits.

Ghazala Baig, chief executive of MedEquip4Kids, said: “We are so grateful to the team at HURST for their enthusiastic fundraising. They were a pleasure to work with and the commitment they show for supporting local charities is inspiring.”

Among the activities undertaken by HURST staff were the Three Peaks Challenge, a ‘dress up as a kid’ day, cake sales, car washing and valeting, and the firm’s annual corporate football tournament.

HURST chief executive Tim Potter said: “Knowing that the money we’ve raised helps to improve the level of care which children receive locally is really fantastic. We’re so grateful to everyone who has helped us raise this phenomenal amount.”

Staff at HURST have chosen Manchester organisation RECLAIM as the firm’s charity of the year for 2019. RECLAIM runs leadership programmes for disadvantaged young people and supports their campaigns and projects.