Yorkshire Day heores: Heroes of the battle for heart unit

That was the message from the Yorkshire Evening Post after we named as Yorkshire Day heroes the countless number of people who signed petitions, wrote letters or played other parts in the fight to save the Leeds General Infirmary unit.

And that sentiment is clearly echoed by Sharon Coyle, chief executive of the Children’s Heart Surgery Fund.

In a grateful letter that was sent out last week to supporters, she wrote: “The Save Our Surgery (SOS) campaign has made a fundamental difference to people’s lives both now and for generations to come!

“The overall aim was to secure the care for generations to come, and as we now know the Leeds Heart Unit will be a designated Surgical Centre, it appears we have succeeded.

“The broad range of support for the SOS campaign was quite unprecedented and ‘thank you’ just doesn’t seem enough.”