IT was the first children’s hospice in the world and it is now celebrating its 30th birthday.

Helen House, in East Oxford, opened its doors in 1982 as a result of Sister Frances Dominica’s friendship with the parents of a seriously-ill two-year-old girl called Helen.

Three decades on, families and staff toasted the hospice’s enduring ability to offer respite care at its Magdalen Road home on Saturday.

Back in the early 1980s the building had just eight children’s bedrooms but now there are two hospices, with Douglas House caring for young adults up to 35 years old and Helen House helping under-18s.

The charity offers short breaks, end-of-life-care, pain and symptom management and counselling and support for families.

Michaela Middleton, whose three-year-old son Finley receives care at the centre, said: “It’s heaven. It’s a bit of an oasis – when you have a few issues with your children, you can go there and it feels like there are people on hand that know what you’re going through.”

Finley, who does not have a diagnosed condition but has a growth hormone deficiency and other difficulties, has been supported by Helen House for about two years.

On Saturday he was one of a number of children who got to enjoy face-painting, cake decorating, a bouncy castle, music and petting animals including a snake.

His mother said: “It was a fabulous day. He was a little apprehensive around the snake but we all had a wonderful time.

“Helen House is a marvellous place, I wish people knew about it more.

“We didn’t know about it until we were referred there and I wish we had known sooner, so we could have done more fundraising.”

Reflecting on the opening of the hospice 30 years ago, Sister Frances said: “We really didn’t know what to expect and didn’t know much ahead of time if anyone would come.

“But the first day two children came – a little boy who lived locally and was about 16 months old, I think, and over the next few days he had more cuddles than he’s ever had in his life.

“But the other person who came in was Melissa, who was 12. She came with her parents all the way from Anglesey, in North Wales.

“They had seen us on a television documentary and decided that it would be a good place to come to. And her parents still remember how excited she was to come on holiday to Oxford.”