SLIMMERS showed their appreciation for the NHS by donating healthy snacks to staff at Great Western Hospital.

Groups from across East Swindon donated Slimming World cereal bars so members of staff trying to lose weight can be thanked for their hard work during the coronavirus outbreak.

Lisa Watson, Slimming World Consultant at Greenbridge, said: “People are grateful for what staff are doing at the moment and they get a lot of lovely donations as thank-you gifts from grateful patients and their families.

“But I’ve got people in my groups who work at the hospital and speaking to them they said it’s actually really hard for them to continue to lose weight because when they go into their staff room, all there is are sweets, chocolates and cake.”

Lisa has moved her sessions online during the lockdown, holding virtual Zoom meetings.

As a result, she and other consultants have a lot of left-over stock of healthy snacks, which members used to be able to buy through them.

“I said ‘I’ve actually got all these bars which we could donate and you could put those in the staff room instead'. So that’s what we’ve done,” said Lisa.

The high-fibre cereal bars were distributed across the maternity ward, the health care clinic and the staff canteen.

“We wanted to make sure that all parts of the hospital got some,” added Lisa.

“It’s lovely that people want to show their appreciation with treats, but that does mean there is nothing for those who are trying to stick to healthier options.”

Lisa’s groups used to meet regularly at Swindon Rugby Club on Tuesdays and Fridays, and along with other Slimming World groups, is now offering free membership to NHS employees.

Lisa said: “It’s so important to do things like this and give back and say thank you to the staff. I was there just for about an hour with a face mask, and all it was was a face mask, and it was stifling.

“The conditions the staff must have to cope with when they are completely covered and still treating people, well I don’t think you can thank them enough really can you for what they’re doing,” she said.