Bedtime Stories for NHS

I was honoured and delighted to be asked to write a special bedtime story for children at the teaching school in NHS Nottinghamshire. So happy in fact, that I wrote two!

These special sensory stories had to be propless, which was a challenge, but, like Millie the Mermaid, I put on my thinking cap and had a good think about what could be used in bed to stimulate the senses, and the ideas flowed!

Some of the children that will be experiencing these stories are at end of life, so I had to be significantly more sensitive than usual, but I think I got there is the end.

The first story is called “Off to Slumberland!” and explores drifting off to sleep or otherwise… it’s a very simple story, but quite affecting in context.

This really inspired me to write another story about different lands you may visit in your dreams! A land of ice cream and marshmallows? A trip through space? A journey beneath the sea? A teddy bears’ picnic? A nightmare!?! This led me to writing “Where Will your Dreams Take You?” a much more traditional sensory story, and I’m rather fond of it!

Angela Dawson, the teacher in the hospital school who initally approached me said “We really appreciate how much time, effort and creativity that has gone into these for us – so the greatest of thanks from the Nottingham Children’s hospital school. I’m sure many families will love doing it.”

It was a pleasure to write these and they’ve really got me thinking about a set of propless bedtime stories for the future, so watch this space!

These are quite personal stories, so I don’t really want to be posting them on the website. However, if anyone would like a copy of the stories for personal use, then give me a shout and I’ll sort you out.

I’d like to say a massive thanks to Angela for the opportunity, I’m delighted to have contributed to the amazing job our NHS do.