11 July 2024
A chapel at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital has been transformed into a multi-faith space for patients, visitors and staff.
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), which runs Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) and the Princess Royal Hospital (PRH) in Telford, is committed to meeting the needs of its diverse communities. As well as investing in growing the chaplaincy service to become a multi-faith team, the Trust is also creating spaces where people of all faiths and beliefs are welcome and supported.
The new multi-faith space at RSH is now in use, with plans under way to create a similar multi-faith area at PRH. There is also a multi-faith space at Hollinswood House in Telford, which is home to the county’s first Community Diagnostic Centre.
As part of the transformation work at RSH, local artist Charlotte Tisdale was commissioned to paint the artwork on the walls to reflect the space.
Charlotte, from Shrewsbury, said: “The brief for this project was very open. It needed to be something welcoming to everyone, so I decided to give myself the topic of ‘community’ for the murals in the room.
“One wall represents our community in Shrewsbury, with nods to local landmarks such as the castle, the Dingle, the quantum leap sculpture, the river and Sabrina boat.
“The next wall is about how communities and families come together to eat. Food is important in many faiths for various reasons and often people will bring food to loved ones who are poorly, so I thought it was nice to have a reference to that in the room.
“The final wall is about growth and depicts a community garden. When you’ve been in hospital for a while it will be nice to come and sit to look at the garden and think about spending time in nature. I hope people find the colours I’ve picked very calming, warm and inviting.”
Kevin Place, Chaplain and Chair of the Multi-faith and Belief Staff Network at SaTH, said: “It was fantastic to celebrate the multi-faith room opening with so many friends. We hope that everyone who visits will find peace, comfort and some time for themselves, even in the most difficult days.”
Hayley Flavell, Director of Nursing, said: “We want all our patients, visitors and staff to feel supported and included and our chaplaincy team, and Charlotte, have done a fantastic job in transforming this space.”
Pictured: Charlotte Tisdale (third from right) with members of SaTH Chaplaincy Team and SaTH Volunteers.