A fundraising appeal designed to enhance equipment in critical care ambulances for children is on the road to reaching its target thanks to savers from a regional building society.

The Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity is aiming to raise £2 million for its recently-launched Critical Journeys Appeal and has been given an early boost with a £66,000 donation from the West Brom.

The money was raised from the annual proceeds of the building society’s Red Balloon Appeal savings account, which is directly linked to the world renowned hospital and sees the West Brom donate a sum each year based on average balances held.

Nick Trueman, PR manager for the West Brom, said: “The Red Balloon Account is very popular with our savers because they appreciate what an essential resource Birmingham Children’s Hospital is for the region and want to do something to help.

We set the account up over 10 years ago and since then it has raised an amazing total of £750,000 which has been channelled into several key appeals and hospital projects.

“Supporting Critical Journeys with this latest donation is a great source of pride for us and the customers who so kindly choose to save through the Red Balloon scheme.”

The Critical Journeys Appeal is designed to transform the patient experience of the Kids Intensive Care and Decision Support (KIDS) service by adding the latest life-saving medical equipment to its ambulances.

The money will allow critical care ambulances to respond faster and more effectively, helping vulnerable patients and their families secure the best possible treatment.

It will also remove the need to share equipment between ambulances so the service can respond to simultaneous demands.

Eloise Davidson, corporate fundraising manager at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said:

“The Critical Journeys Appeal is vital to the service we provide to thousands of young people and their families across the UK each year.

The West Brom has been a long-standing supporter of ours and has raised a phenomenal amount of money, as well as backing other campaigns such as The Big Sleuth last summer.

Our sincere thanks goes to the West Brom and its savers for setting us on our way with this appeal.”

The West Brom is a leading regional building society with 37 branches and more than 440,000 members.