Hastings Round Table donates £10,000 to Conquest Hospital equipment appeal
Hastings Round Table has given £10,000 to the Friends of Conquest Hospital's 2026 Equipment Appeal, one of the largest grants the Round Table has made in recent years.
The donation covers almost a tenth of the £101,000 the Friends are raising for medical equipment at the hospital.
The money comes from the proceeds of the Hastings Beer and Music Festival, which took place at The Oval in July. Run by Round Table members and more than 80 volunteers.
The Festival has been raising money for local organisations since 1982 and has now raised more than £1.5 million for local charities.
The appeal is paying for equipment that sits outside standard NHS budgets. Its targets include 12 special care cots for the Special Care Baby Unit, which looks after up to 34 babies each month, 30 Holter cardiac monitors that let patients have heart tests at home rather than on a ward, and a maternity resuscitaire for a unit where around 400 babies are born every year.
Jo Clark, General Manager at the Friends of Conquest Hospital, said: "This is a remarkable gift from Hastings Round Table and it takes us a big step closer to our £101,000 target. Every pound we raise stays at the Conquest, and this grant will help us buy equipment that makes a real difference to patients and the staff caring for them. We are very grateful to the Round Table and to everyone who came to the festival."
Jamie Neal of Hastings Round Table said: "Almost everyone in Hastings has a connection to the Conquest, so it was an easy decision to back this appeal. Thank you to everyone who came along and to the volunteers who make the Festival happen. It is their work that lets us give this much back to the town."
The Friends are still working towards their target. Find out more about the appeal, or make your own donation at www.conquestfriends.co.uk/what-we-do/equipmentappeal2026/
The festival returns in July 2027, when it will be rebranded as the Hastings Festival. If you are interested in volunteering at the Hastings Festival or would like to learn more about joining Hastings Round Table, please get in touch at ([email protected]) and come along to one of their meetings.