In Victorian and early-twentieth-century hospitals like the North-Eastern Hospital for Children, it was common for individual beds (“cots” for children) to be financially sponsored by donors. The donor’s name—or the name of a club, society, or publication—would be associated with that specific cot, often literally displayed on a plaque above it. This system was part of the charitable funding model that hospitals relied on before the creation of the NHS in 1948.
Hospitals depended almost entirely on voluntary donations rather than government funding. Wealthy individuals, charitable societies, churches, businesses, and even children’s clubs would subscribe money each year to maintain a hospital bed. The cost varied depending on the hospital, but donors typically contributed enough annually to cover the estimated cost of treating patients in that cot (food, nursing care, and medical supplies).
There were numerous sponsors of cots in the Little Folks ward, some of these are noted below:
