King’s welcomes HRH The Duchess of Cornwall

Today (25 January) Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall visited The Haven, Camberwell, to see the most recent addition to the network, the Children and Young People’s (CYP) Haven. The Duchess had a tour of the centre and met with staff.

The Duchess met with Consultant Paediatricians, Dr Andrea Goddard and Dr Christine Greenshaw; Dr Rhianna Watts, Clinical Psychologist; Christine Murphy, Family Nurse Advocate; Simon Cordon, Service Manager for The Havens; and Michelle Mountfort, Service Delivery Manager for The Havens; Dr Leonie Penna, Medical Director for Urgent Care, Planned Care and Allied Clinical Services at King’s; and Gill Edelman, Chief Executive of the King’s College Hospital Charity. The visit was also supported by colleagues from the Met Police.

The Duchess has an ongoing interest in the work of the Havens, and visited the Haven Whitechapel in October 2015 to mark the launch of her wash kits scheme across all three Havens. Every client is offered a wash bag that contains toiletries such as shampoo, shower gel, a tooth brush and toothpaste to use following a forensic examination.

The Havens, run by King’s, are three specialist sexual assault referral centres in London, with locations in Camberwell, Whitechapel, and Paddington. The CYP Haven was established in 2016, to provide a dedicated environment tailored to the needs of this age group. It offers a calm space for medical examinations, counselling and therapy, with soft coloured chairs and brightly coloured rugs giving a soothing alternative to clinical furniture. There is also artwork and in one of the rooms children and young people have access to an interactive 3D system, a tool designed to provide comfort and distraction.