Bournemouth and former Spurs and England under-21 footballer Adam Smith donates iPads to Princess Alexandra Hospital

Premier League footballer Adam Smith has donated 10 iPads for patients at Princess Alexandra Hospital.

The Bournemouth and former Spurs right-back, who was born in Leytonstone, wanted to help the Harlow hospital during the coronavirus crisis.

As well as the tablets, the 29-year-old, who honed his skills at Tottenham's youth academy and once played for Bishop's Stortford, has donated accompanying cases and 10 pairs of Apple EarPods to be shared with staff in a prize draw.

Adam, who also played for England under-21s, said: "I made this donation so that people can FaceTime their families when they're ill and need to speak to them. Hopefully this helps them out and helps the hospital out and makes it more comfortable for them. I have my own family and I can't imagine what it feels like.

"A massive thank you to all of the NHS workers, the doctors, the nurses, everyone associated with the hospital and the NHS – you are doing an amazing job for the Covid-19 patients. Thank you so much for your hard work."

Shahid Sardar, associate director of patient engagement at PAH, said: "We're so grateful to Adam for donating iPads to be used for our video call service.

"Since we introduced the service, we've received fantastic feedback about the difference this has made for our patients and their family members. It means so much to people to stay in contact with their loved ones during these unprecedented times and helps to keep their spirits up."

John Keddie, who chairs the Princess Alexandra Hospitals' Charity, said: "Thank you to Adam for making such a thoughtful gesture in donating so generously to our hospital.

"The iPads will provide an important way for our patients to communicate with their friends and family members as part of the video call service available at our hospital. The prize draw for the headphones will also give a real boost for our dedicated staff."