Colleagues and customers of Datapath came together in 2025 to raise money in support of Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Through a series of challenges and hands-on volunteering activities, they managed to reach a total of £5,700.

Highlights included a particularly demanding and motivating, mud-filled Tough Mudder; a lively dragon boat race in which a fun flotilla of Datapath “chickens” took to the water; and rounding off the year with the team’s festive Jolly Jumper Day.

The hospital was chosen as Datapath’s charity of choice after the Senior International Sales Manager, Andy Lee, saw his young son, Alfie, diagnosed with craniosynostosis shortly after birth. Craniosynostosis is a congenital condition in which the bones of a baby’s skull fuse too early. Alfie was seven months old when he underwent surgery, a seven-hour operation followed by a week of recovery in hospital. The excellent facilities at Birmingham Children’s Hospital ensured that Andy and his wife, Clair, were able to stay with him on Ward 10 during his treatment.

Birmingham Children’s Hospital is very close to my heart and my family’s, so the support shown by everyone at Datapath over the past year has meant a great deal to me personally. The team’s energy, generosity and willingness to get involved make a real difference to the hospital and to the children and families it supports, and I couldn’t be prouder of everyone involved, says Andy Lee, Senior International Sales Manager at Datapath.

To extend the team’s impact, Datapath has expanded its support beyond fundraising. Employees are now entitled to two fully paid volunteering days per year dedicated to the hospital, which can be used individually or in small groups.

This year, Suzanne Bowery and Christina Bolton from Datapath’s marketing team rolled up their sleeves on the ward, contributing their creativity to the hospital’s Art Kart initiative.The funds raised have been distributed among a number of deserving causes within the hospital. £1,600 has been donated to Ward 10, providing beds for parents who wish to stay with their children overnight, as well as new toys and books for the ward’s play area. The money also helps to improve treatments for children on the ward whose illnesses are so severe that they require surgery and hospital care. A total of £3,100 has been contributed to the It Starts Here campaign, which is transforming the hospital’s entrance to create a more welcoming first impression for families and help prevent patients from feeling afraid when they arrive. The team also raised £100 in donations of toiletry kits for teenagers on the wards.

In the run-up to the holidays, the hospital’s special Magic Makers campaign is improving the environment for young patients spending Christmas on the wards, while local businesses—including Datapath—have taken part in the Jolly Jumper Day Business Challenge, judged by the patients themselves to select the “jolliest team” and the “best dressed”.