Mikes Ride for Primrose

Mike Walsh will take on two cycling challenges to raise funds for Primrose Car Service. The Wicklow 200 on 7th June is Ireland’s premier cycling sportive, taking in many of the most iconic climbs in Ireland’s ‘Garden County’ in an event that is among the most arduous and most revered annual cycling events on the world calendar. The event covers over 200 kilometres and 10,000 ft of climbing around the Wicklow mountains, a major international cycling destination. https://wicklow200.ie

The iconic London to Brighton on 21st June covers 54 miles, including the famous Ditchling Beacon climb.

Since January 2006, patients from the Primrose Oncology Unit going to Addenbrookes for Radiotherapy treatment have been able to travel in comfort and without charge due to a pioneering car service set up and run by the Bedford Hospitals Charity. Previously the patients were dependent on Patient Transport Service vehicles which collected a number of patients requiring different treatments at Addenbrookes from around the county before making their way to Cambridge. The whole trip often lasted all day. Thanks to the dedicated Primrose Car Service, which is believed to be unique in the NHS, patients are conveyed by comfortable Toyota Corolla and Rav4 cars from home to Addenbrookes and returned home as soon as the treatment – which only takes a few minutes – is completed. The six cars are purchased by the Charity and driven by unpaid volunteers, and the patient management is provided by the East of England Ambulance NHS Trust. Each year approximately 2000 patient journeys are made. Further information on the Primrose Car Service can be found by following the link: https://bedfordhospitalcharity.org.uk › primrose-car-service

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"The Friends of Bedford Hospital" and "Bedford Hospitals Charity" joined forces in 2019 forming Bedford Hospital Charity & Friends. Our purpose is to support patients and staff at Bedford Hospital, by fundraising to install new equipment and improve facilities and services for all, having now raised over £14 million for the hospital.

We have two appeals:

1) "The BHC&F Fundraising Appeal". In late 2024 we donated £600,000 to purchase the add-on equipment to a basic CT Scanner that allows Cardiac Angiography to be performed without prior preparation as is currently required for Cardiac CT Scans. The scanner has now been operational since November 2024 and is a significant step forward in diagnostic capability at Bedford, allowing non-invasive coronary artery imaging, and improved CT guided biopsy accuracy. During the summer of 2025 we completed the "Children's Cancer Services Appeal", raising £80,000. This was used to refurbish two dedicated Cancer Care side rooms on Riverbank Ward where acutely ill children who develop complications whilst undergoing treatment at Addenbrookes or Great Ormond Street hospitals can be treated urgently. Also included in the £80,000 were funds to pay the first year's salary for a dedicated Cancer Care Nurse. We are now raising £45,000 for the Stabilisation and Treatment room on Riverbank Ward where patients arriving acutely ill on the ward are treated and stabilised. This room has not been improved since the ward opened in 1995, requiring significant upgrade.

2) "Primrose Car Service"  At no charge, a special team of volunteer drivers take Bedford Hospital out-patients for their radiotherapy treatment at Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge.

If you would like to support either of these appeals please click on their dedicated donate buttons. We pride ourselves in having very low overheads, with 99.5% of all money going direct to patient care