Denise started working at the Trust as a domestic cleaner 23 years ago. She then began work in linen and, seven years ago, moved to the sewing room in Epsom, which is on the ground floor of the Wells Wing.
Denise said: "Not everyone knows that there are sewing rooms at Epsom and St Helier, but we're kept very busy making curtains for the wards and repairing uniforms for our nurses.
"It's probably quite unusual to have sewing rooms in hospital nowadays, but by making the curtains and keeping uniforms in a good state of repair, we save our hospitals a lot of money. And of course, we're here for people in emergencies - if you lost a button or broke a zip, we're the place to come."
The team are currently making curtains for the maternity unit at St Helier, a job which keeps them very busy indeed.
Denise said: "Curtains are needed almost constantly by the hospitals, and making the curtains for maternity is keeping us occupied. It can be quite time consuming, especially considering the interruptions that come through the door!"
A day in the sewing room begins with an early start for the three staff working across sites, so that they can be on hand for the people who need their help.
"We start early so that we can be here to help the nurses coming off the night shift. I start at 7am, so that anyone who needs their uniform altering can pop in before they go home," said Denise.
"It's an interesting job and there's always a steady flow of work for us to be getting on with. And we've got a good team here, we all get on really well."
After a long day at work, Denise still has a long list of things to do at home. She said: "I don't sit down for long, otherwise I'd fall asleep! I love knitting, and have been doing it for years and years. I used to make clothes for my grandchildren when they were tiny, but now they're a bit older, they want hats and scarves. And of course, there's always things to be stitched up and repaired at home. I'm always hearing, 'Nanny, can you do this for me?'"
