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Holiday village for ill children is 'quite unique'

Clare Lissaman
BBC News, West Midlands
Kids' Village An artist's impression of how the village will look. The picture has a lodge next to a lake with trees and grass areas around it. In the background is another building with a slanted roof. Kids' Village
The holiday village will be a sanctuary for families facing the most challenging times, said project leaders

A holiday village which aims to provide a sanctuary for critically ill children and their families is being planned.

The Kids Village charity aims to provide free of charge respite holidays on land donated by a farming family near Lichfield. It hopes to support more than 4,000 people a year.

Aston University in Birmingham said it would donate £200,000 to the charity's 30-acre site in Wychnor.

It praised its aim of providing "a sanctuary where vulnerable families can create precious memories together during the most challenging times of their lives". It also said the scheme was "quite unique" for the UK.

A woman with long brown hair smiling at the camera. She is wearing a pink lanyard and top which has "Ashby Netball Club on it. Behind her is a sports court.
Sam Fletcher-Goodwin, co-founder of Kids' Village, said the aim was to create a magical place were families could enjoy themselves and build memories

The charity was founded by the Fletcher family who said they know the "pain and worry" of having a child with a life-threatening illness after daughter Sam was diagnosed with cancer aged nine.

Sam Fletcher-Goodwin, now 31 and a presenter and producer, helped secure planning permission for the site inspired by her family's visit to Give Kids the World Village (GKTW) in Florida about 20 years ago.

Kids' Village An artist's impression of one of the lodges at the site. It has a wide outside area which is raised, large glass doors and windows and a slanted roof. It is surrounded by trees and has another lodge in the background. The lodges are spaced apart. Kids' Village
Students from Aston University will design one of the lodges used by families

Students from the university's Design Factory will also design one of the village's 10 lodges, which will be called Aston Lodge.

The project fitted the university's purpose of serving the communities in our city and region, said Professor Aleks Subic, vice chancellor and chief executive at Aston.

"And in particular our main purpose is to transform lives," he told BBC WM presenter Ed James, himself a trustee of Kids' Village.

He added the project was "something quite unique" for the UK and addressed the needs of "the most vulnerable young people that you could find in our society".

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