NEW 'family seating' has been introduced in the Outpatients' area of the Royal Hospital for Children (RHC) after an investment of £10,000. 

The new seating, which gives added protection from Covid, adds to the atrium's colourful interior and comes in green, orange, purple, blue and pink.

They replace previous rows of six, seven and eight seats and give sufficient space for wheelchair users. 

Mhairi Fitzharris, interim Outpatients’ manager said: "In many public areas we are now used to seeing chairs ‘blanked out’ or covered up for social distancing reasons.

"Our atrium is such a bright and exciting place for our patients, we wanted to find a better –and longer-term –solution.

"The answer was to reduce the seating numbers while giving parents and carers the chance to sit with their child while waiting for a clinic.

"The new banks for three seats were found to be the perfect solution and the feedback we are getting is really positive.

"The investment totalled £10,000."

"It also frees up space in the atrium and there’s plenty of room to move around.

"The new seating also has ample space for wheelchairs too."

Carolyne Moretti, who recently visited the RHC with her niece Lola Johnstone, 9, said: "We liked the new seats and they allowed us to keep our distance from others around.

"Lola likes all the fun activities in the Outpatients area and even makes friends there."