The Dudley Group NHS Charity is getting ready to welcome its newest member to their team, their new charity mascot, Aati!
Designed by eleven-year-old, Laila Adams-Flash, who entered a competition ran by the charity for local children, she was thrilled to receive the news that her creation had been chosen as the winning design.
After receiving over fifty entries for the competition, the winning design of a friendly fox called Aati (which means the one who is generous in Arabic) caught the imagination of the judges. Wearing a Black Country inspired t-shirt, a chain and holding the charity flag in his paw, Aati’s friendly and fun personality shone through!
Chief executive for The Dudley Group, Diane Wake, said, “We have been overwhelmed by the time, energy and effort shown by children across Dudley and the Black Country for our charity mascot design challenge. The most difficult part was choosing our winner, there were so many amazing entries. I’d like to thank all the young people who entered and made our job of choosing very difficult!”
The competition was created through a unique partnership between Dudley Group NHS Charity and educational resource publishing company Twinkl, the opportunity has been funded by a development grant from NHS Charities Together.
Laila, winner of the Dudley Group NHS Charity Mascot Design Challenge, said, “I feel so happy to be the winner of this competition, I love drawing characters and cartoons so when my mum told me about the competition, I knew I really wanted to take part! I can’t wait to see Aati showing others that’s its kind to give to charity”.
Laila’s mum Rosemarie works for the Trusts Dudley Rehab Service as a clinical lead occupational therapist, she saw the competition advertised on the intranet and encouraged Laila to enter. She said, “I am very proud of Laila and what she has accomplished, I always knew she had the ability to create a brilliant design for this competition, we are looking forward to seeing the mascot in person!”
Laila will be visiting Twinkl HQ next month, with her mum and the charity to bring Aati to life alongside their world-renowned design team. The character will then be transformed into a life-size mascot to entertain charity supporters for years to come.
Nithee Patel head of fundraising and charity, said “Laila’s winning design perfectly captures what the Dudley Group NHS Charity is all about – celebrating our Black Country roots and spreading the joy of giving to everyone.”
Laila is a student at the Q3 Langley Academy in Oldbury. Miss Binsley who is Year 7 personalised learning director said “We are thrilled to hear that Laila has won the charity mascot competition. She is a wonderful ambassador for Q3 Academy Langley and embodies our academy ethos both in school and in the local community. She is a real asset to our year 7 family”.
The mascot will be officially unveiled to Laila and the public at the Dudley Group NHS Charity’s superhero fun run and family fun day event on Sunday 9th of June at Himley Hall Park.
The charity is encouraging the public to sign up and attend. More details can be found here: 5K Superhero Fun Run and Fun Day! – The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust (dgft.nhs.uk).
