Two hospitals in Leicestershire have received donations of blankets worth £1,000 from Amazon's fulfilment centres in Coalville and Hinckley.

Raising Health, a charity associated with Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust is host to Raising a Smile for Christmas appeal that provides festive gifts for over 6000 patients at the trust who are with them on Christmas Day.

One hundred blankets were delivered to Coalville Community Hospital and Hinckley and Bosworth Community Hospital by the Amazon teams.

The hospitals are associated with Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust and provide sub-acute, complex rehabilitation and end-of-life care to patients in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland who have been transferred from other hospitals.

Gary Norton, General Manager at Amazon in Hinckley, said: "We're proud to partner with Amazon in Coalville to donate these blankets to these hospitals, especially as we move into the winter months. I hope this donation is well received by the staff and patients at the hospitals."

Carolyn Pascoe, Raising Health's Fundraising Manager, added: "The blankets provided by Amazon are an amazing contribution to our appeal and the Amazon employees at the Hinckley and Coalville fulfilment centres have made sure that they bring a smile for our inpatients on Christmas morning at Hinckley & Bosworth Community Hospital and Coalville Hospital.

"It can be frightening and lonely being in hospital on Christmas Day, so this truly makes a huge difference to our patients."

Community donations and employee volunteering are just two of the ways Amazon supports the communities in and around its operating locations across the UK.

Amazon provides students, teachers and parents with free computer science and STEM education programmes through Amazon Future Engineer and has teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver more than seven million healthy breakfasts to children at risk of hunger in disadvantaged areas of the country.

Earlier this year, Amazon partnered with Comic Relief to become the official home of the Red Nose. Amazon employees across the UK hosted fundraising activities and together with their customers and partners, raised £2.7 million to support those going through the toughest time of their lives.

Learn more about the ways Amazon supports its communities.

You can learn more about Raising Health's Raising a Smile for Christmas appeal HERE.