Imagine being in a classroom where dinosaurs, sea creatures and planets float around you, where you are immersed in a new and exciting world, and learning is a truly unforgettable experience.

Now imagine that this classroom is in hospital – or even at your hospital bed.

Well, that's what's happening in the Oxford Children's Hospital.

New funding of £52,000 from Oxford Hospitals Charity means that young patients can now experience the very best virtual reality learning tools available.

The hospital’s classrooms are brimming with new ways to bring lessons to life and are noisy with the sounds of children laughing and learning.

The funding from the charity is thanks to a generous donation from the John Laing Charitable Trust and has equipped the Oxfordshire Hospital School with 16 state-of-the-art VR headsets alongside a series of augmented reality learning packages, which include the worlds of dinosaurs, anatomy, space, animals, aircraft and more.

A further ten new laptops for teaching have also been funded, alongside specialist training for teaching staff to get the very best out of the new equipment.

Tamsin Rawlings, Head of Major Gifts at Oxford Hospitals Charity joined a teaching session recently to observe the new kit being used.

She said: “Children in hospital really benefit from life being kept as ‘normal’ as possible, and activities, play and learning are three really important ways to help this.

“So I was delighted to visit one of the classrooms in the Oxford Children’s Hospital to see first-hand the difference this new high-tech and interactive learning equipment is making.

“Wow! Is the easiest way to sum up what I saw.

“The children were transported back in time to the land of the dinosaurs and even up into space to explore the International Space Station.

“Seeing the young patients so excited to learn was fantastic and you could see how truly immersed they were in the lessons – which transported them away from the clinical setting.

“We are so grateful to everyone at John Laing for this wonderful gift. Their generosity will make such a difference to children, inspiring them to continue their education regardless of their health challenges.”

“The donation will also be funding a large screen for the classroom especially adapted for eye tracking to enable children with very limited mobility to engage and control the screen – which will be such a step forward for many young patients in the Children’s Hospital.”

This is one of many ways our Oxford Hospitals Charity supporters make a difference for patients, young and old.

Could you help us do even more?