The new partnership, funded by Innovate UK, will see researchers from the University of Essex work closely with Spread a Smile to better understand and demonstrate, via research-backed evaluation, the powerful impact of the charity’s hospital entertainers, which include magicians, fairies and therapy dogs, who visit children during some of the toughest moments of their lives.
The project is being delivered through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) and will focus on capturing how visits from Spread a Smile’s entertainers improve children’s wellbeing, support families, and enhance the hospital experience. It will also help the charity strengthen its services and expand to more specialist children’s hospitals nationwide.
Previous research by Spread a Smile has already shown the difference its work makes, with 93 per cent of children saying they felt happier after a visit. This new project will build on that evidence, helping the charity show funders, partners and the wider public exactly how vital these moments of joy can be.
The research will be led by Dr ZhiMin Xiao, Senior Lecturer in the School of Health and Social Care at the University of Essex, alongside Dr Nestor Asiamah, Lecturer in the same school, and a postgraduate researcher recruited specifically for the project.
Dr Xiao said, “Children and young people have always been at the heart of my research. This project allows us to see and feel the impact of Spread a Smile’s work directly in hospital settings, where it matters most.
We are absolutely thrilled to be working with such a wonderful charity and to be part of something that brings comfort and happiness to children and families at incredibly difficult times.”
The partnership will help Spread a Smile develop a robust evaluation framework that reflects the realities of hospital life, taking into account factors such as a child’s age, medical condition, length of stay and family circumstances. It will explore questions such as how often children benefit most from visits, how entertainment affects their hospital experience, and the difference it makes to parents and carers.
Lucy Jackson, Chief Executive of Spread a Smile, said the project marks a major step forward for the charity, “This is an extremely important piece of work for Spread a Smile. It will help us clearly understand and showcase the amazing impact our entertainers have across the NHS hospitals we partner with, and for the families we support.
As a charity, we are committed to delivering the very best service possible for seriously ill children. This research will help ensure we reach families when they need us most, inspire more people to support our work, and support our ambition to deliver regular entertainment in all specialist children’s hospitals across the UK.”
Spread a Smile currently reaches around 10 per cent of seriously unwell children in specialist settings and has set an ambitious goal to deliver regular entertainment provision in all specialist children’s hospitals by 2035.
The project is funded by Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency, as part of its Knowledge Transfer Partnership programme, which connects universities with organisations to tackle real-world challenges through research and innovation.
Applications are now open for the postgraduate research role and the closing date is 11 February 2026.
