Season › 2015-16 › News Baines becomes Alder Hey patron , 10 November, 2comments | Jump to most recent Leighton Baines has pledged his support to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital by becoming a patron of the world-renowned healthcare facility. The Everton star has been paying visits to the specialist hospital for eight years to meet young patients and has now committed to doing all he can to put smiles on the face of children receiving treatment. Baines was given a private tour of the city’s new hospital in September and was blown away by the impressive set-up, labelling it the “best healthcare facility for kids in the country”. The new £250m healthcare campus, known as Alder Hey in the Park, is the result of a decade-long project to create a state-of-the-art medical facility. With the design inspired by children, some of the remarkable features include a giant indoor tree house and outdoor play decks with fish tanks on each of the six wards. Article continues below video content Today, Baines was officially welcomed as patron by one of Alder Hey’s young fundraising ambassadors, nine-year-old Kenzie Appleton, who has done remarkable charity work, including setting up a Christmas toy appeal for other patients, since being diagnosed with a rare bone condition five years ago. He then visited one of the hospital wards to meet young patients who were taking part in a play therapy workshop with Everton in the Community. Leighton Baines joins an Everton in the Community play therapy workshop with young patients on one of the wards at Alder Hey. Pictured with Leighton are Alder Hey’s young fundraising ambassador Kenzie and Everton in the Community’s Johnny Garside. Staff from the Blues’ official charity work at Alder Hey every single day to deliver fun activity sessions to sick and disabled children, engaging with around 1,500 patients each year. The workshops provide a much-needed platform for social interaction and laughter that breaks up the tedium of long-term hospital care and eases children’s anxieties about treatment. Baines said: “I’m so proud to be welcomed as a patron today because every time I come to Alder Hey I am amazed by the fantastic work of the staff and the incredible character of the young patients. It’s a truly amazing place and we’re so lucky to have this world-class facility in our city. “Everton has always had a close relationship with Alder Hey and that’s no more evident than the fact that Everton in the Community is here every single day, working to put a smile on the kid’s faces and aid their recovery. You can see how much the play therapy workshops really lift spirits and make a difference not just to the kids, but to their families too.” Reader Comments (2) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer Rob Hooton 1 Posted 10/11/2015 at 21:27:49 You're a class act, Bainesy lad, as are the club for the community work they do. No-one can knock BK for that side of things, certainly NSNO.Now hurry back into action and make sure that left peg does the business, Leighton! Matthew Williams 2 Posted 11/11/2015 at 15:38:01 Gotta love Baines. The sooner he's back the better. True pro, true Blue! Add Your Comments In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site. » Log in now Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site. About these ads © ToffeeWeb