Rolls-Royce creates a car for sick children to drive themselves to surgery

Having an operation can be a scary prospect for any of us.

But it must be particularly daunting for young children as they make sense of an unfamiliar and imposing hospital environment that they’re not acquainted with.

So Rolls Royce has come up with the ultimate creation to make the experience more positive – a child-sized luxury car that enables young patients to drive themselves to the operating theatre.

The model, known as the Rolls-Royce SRH, is exclusively used at St Richard’s Hospital in Chichester, West Sussex.

Children facing the scary prospect of surgery are able to drive the car to the operating theatre, navigating the maze of paediatric corridors which are lined with mock traffic signs.

The car, which is powered by a 24-volt battery, boasts a top speed of 10mph and was created after more than 400 hours of development.

Sue Nicholls, the paediatric matron at Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: ‘We know boys and girls alike will love driving it and in the coming years it will help turn a daunting experience into a more fun and enjoyable one for hundreds and hundreds of children.’

Among the first children to try the new ride were eight-year-old Molly Matthews and Hari Rajyaguru, seven, who tested it at the company’s Chichester production plant before returning home in Rolls-Royce Ghosts.

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Marianne Griffiths, chief executive of Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: ‘It is a very special gift and one of the most wonderful donations ever received by Love Your Hospital, our trust’s dedicated charity.’