The Evelyn Trust pledges £1m towards Addenbrooke’s scanner and youth mental health hub in Cambridge

The Evelyn Trust has pledged £1million to fund a youth mental health hub in Cambridge and an advanced MRI scanner for Addenbrooke’s Hospital.

The trust unveiled the projects at its centenary celebration, held at Magdalene College last Thursday.

The grant-making charity confirmed that for its centenary year it will double the usual £1m a year it gives to medical research and health and wellbeing projects in Cambridgeshire.

The projects will take the total funding it has given to more than £23m since 2003, when it was formed following the sale of the Evelyn Nursing Home – which dated back to 1922-23 – to the Nuffield Hospital.

The proceeds formed the endowment from which grants are made annually.

Beth Green, chief executive of Centre 33, which supports young people with mental health and other issues, described the plans with other partners for a Cambridge YESH – a Youth Early Support Hub – to help young people to access early mental health support and other advice and help in a welcoming non-clinical space.

The 120 guests gathered heard how such hubs have proved of real benefit elsewhere and that one is badly needed in Cambridge, which has much less capacity than other major cities.

Beth said the trust’s £500,000 contribution is expected to attract other funders to come forward to help cover the £3million total cost.

Professors Peter Hutchinson and David Rowitch, from Addenbrooke’s and the University of Cambridge, told guests about Project Pegasus. This will bring an intra-operative MRI scanner to the hospital.

The specialist scanner works during surgery on brain tumours and other conditions that require delicate and highly accurate procedures, aiding accuracy and reducing the likelihood of repeat operations.

It is hoped the trust’s contribution will again be a magnet for other funders.

The Lord Lieutenant’s office, the mayor and mayoress of Cambridge and the High Sheriff joined other dignitaries, donors, charities, senior doctors and academic researchers at the event, where trust president Julian Agnew spoke about his great-grandparents’ part in founding Evelyn Hospital and its transformation into a major grant-giving trust.

Dame Sally Davies, master of Trinity College and former Chief Medical Officer of England, gave the keynote speech, speaking about the importance to clinicians of being supported to understand evidence-based medicine early in their career – something The Evelyn Trust has supported for years.

Other presenters told how their work has been funded by the trust.

Dr Nicole Asemota, of Papworth Hospital, was supported with a studentship to increase the numbers of donor hearts being accepted for heart transplantation.

Andrew Palmer, of Cambridgeshire Deaf Association, told guests how information videos with sign-language had been created thanks to a camera funded by the trust, as well as a hearing aid service for care homes. His presentation was signed by colleague Rachael Dance.

And Dr Ronit Pressler spoke about improving the diagnosis of neonatal seizures, following the James Bradfield Memorial Grant via the trust.

There was an exhibition at the event showcasing the many causes that have won funds, covering areas such homelessness, support for parents, assistance for the disabled and research on neuroscience, engineering in the clinic and surgical training.

The trust’s charity director, Rebecca Wood said afterwards: “We have received so many enthusiastic comments from those attending about the quality of the speakers and projects, as well as their amazement that The Evelyn Trust had funded so much and so widely over the last 20 years since the creation of the endowment, benefiting many thousands of Cambridgeshire people.

“There was also huge interest in the importance of the two centenary projects, and we hope that we have helped to catalyse the funding which will be needed for the Cambridge Youth Early Support Hub and the intra-operative projects to go ahead.”

The trust’s annual application deadline, except for its small grants scheme, is November 30.

To find out more about The Evelyn Trust, see evelyntrust.com.