A TIME capsule present from today has been hidden for a future generation to find in the rafters of a hospice extension.

Children and staff at Naomi House and Jacksplace children’s hospice watched as the time capsule was placed in a small void high in the rafters of a newly-built section of the hospice, in Sutton Scotney, which will become inaccessible once current building work is complete.

The capsule was filled with items that will, one day, offer its finder an insight into Naomi House and Jacksplace in 2014. The items were sealed in an air-tight plastic tube.

The contents included children’s artwork, poetry, photographs and information about the hospice and the Caterpillar Appeal building schedule that is underway.

Mark Smith, the hospice’s chief operating officer, climbed two separate scaffold towers to reach the new roof and, watched by the charity’s staff and some of the children, placed the capsule at the highest point in the hospice’s new ‘hub’.

The hub is a major element of the Caterpillar Appeal and will provide space for messy play, arts and craft sessions and music therapy, as well as family accommodation, a spiritual area and roof garden.

Liz Hopper, who has worked at the hospice since 1998, said: “Working in the family support team, we see families from their first visit to the hospice through to their child’s death. Beginnings and endings are important to do well.

“This time capsule tells a story of today, and the people of tomorrow, who discover it ,will catch a glimpse of life in the hospice in 2014.”

Keith Wilson, senior communications officer at Naomi House & Jacksplace, added: “This was a really special day here at the hospices. Not only did it feel like we had reached another key milestone in our building project and Caterpillar Appeal, but it also felt as though we were making a bit of Naomi House history.

“We can only imagine the excitement that will be felt in the distant future when the time capsule is discovered and a new group of children, families, volunteers and staff sit down to look at the things we left for them.”