Lioness and Manchester City Football Club defender Esme Morgan has raised over £20K for The Becton Centre
Esme, who has been a patron of The Children’s Hospital Charity since 2020, visited The Becton Centre on Monday 9th October to find out first-hand how her fundraising will make a difference.

Lioness and Manchester City Football Club defender Esme Morgan has raised over £20K for The Becton Centre for Children & Young People, Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust’s mental health centre which cares for young adults aged up to 18 with serious and complex mental health issues.
Esme, who has been a patron of The Children’s Hospital Charity since 2020, visited The Becton Centre on Monday 9th October to find out first-hand how her fundraising will make a difference.
As a patron of The Children’s Hospital Charity, Esme has fundraised by raffling off signed shirts from the Summer’s World Cup Lioness squad, last year’s Euro squad and the Manchester City men’s team.
Home to a range of world-leading clinicians in care and research, alongside some of the best medical services available to children, demand for Sheffield Children’s services continues to grow every year. One of only three dedicated children’s hospital trusts in the UK, the Trust sees patients from across the UK and beyond.
At The Becton Centre, Esme met six young people at Becton School where patients showed her around the classrooms, chatted about the World Cup and all things football, and even had a kickabout in the centre’s sports hall.
The tour of the centre took Esme to shared spaces, a bedroom example and areas that are due to be revitalised using funds from The Children’s Hospital Charity.
Matt Loates, Clinical Nurse Manager at The Becton Centre’s Emerald Lodge, said: “Visits from people like Esme show the young people that people who are potentially their heroes care. Esme was wonderful with everyone, answering plenty of questions!
“The money that Esme has raised has the potential to add so much to the young people and their family's lives and make what is an incredibly challenging time a lot easier.”
During her visit to The Becton Centre, one patient even gave Esme a handmade bracelet they had worked hard to create as a thank you for her visit.
Esme said: “I really enjoyed my visit to The Becton Centre, in particular, getting to meet some of the amazing young people and staff there. I couldn’t believe I was gifted a handmade bracelet; it was so kind.
“It was great to see first-hand how money raised for the Charity makes such a huge contribution to improving the experience of the young people who receive support at the centre. I can’t thank the patients and staff enough for the brilliant tour and warm welcome. I look forward to visiting again soon.”
Mel Kilner, Head of Becton School, said: “Our patients were really appreciative that Esme visited the Becton site. It’s not every day you get a celebrity visitor! The young people really enjoyed spending time with Esme and thought that she was very warm and genuine and they were interested to hear why she had an interest in mental health. Thank you so much, Esme!”
Rob Gurruchaga, Development Officer at The Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “On behalf of everyone at the Charity we are so grateful to Esme for her support. It was amazing to watch the Lionesses this summer and for Esme to have used this opportunity to support the Charity is incredible.
“It was even better to hear she wanted to come and see The Becton Centre herself; it was incredible to see her getting to know patients, and we can’t thank her enough for everything she does.”
To find out more about how you can support the Charity visit our website here: tchc.org.uk/get-involved