Waterlooville inventor donates 4,000 sleep aids to children's charity

Now the inventor is hoping to spread a little joy to other tired parents by donating her cuddly sleep aids to charity shops.

Lynda has donated 4,000 Russell the dream sheepdogs to Barnados, the children’s charity.

The sleep aids are now hitting the shelves of stores around the country, including Lynda’s local Barnados in Waterlooville.

Russell is the latest invention from Lynda and is aimed at older toddlers from 18 months.

It helps toddlers sleep with a warm glow of calming blue and green colours.

And there is a voice recorder where parents can create personalised recordings of themselves talking, singing or reading.

The 51-year-old has sold 12,000 of the devices so far, following on from her original invention, Ewan the Dream Sheep, which is aimed at newborn babies and has sales of more than 250,000 worldwide.

Lynda came up with the idea of Ewan – which emits soothing sounds and a soft pink glow – after struggling to get her sixth child, Bradley, off to sleep.

The Russell sheepdogs are on sale at Barnados for between £5 and £10 and proceeds will go to the children’s charity.

Lynda, who lives in Purbrook and runs Woodside Nursery School, said: ‘Making this donation has been an honour.

‘I am so proud that SweetDreamers can do something to help the lives of children. Barnardos is a brilliant charity and the work they do is so vital, we wanted to do something to support them.

‘We will miss each and every one of the 4,000 Russells, but are excited about their new homes!’

Lynda, who admits she now sleeps with Ewan The Dream Sheep as it even helps her get some shut-eye, said she still gets a buzz about her inventions.

She said: ‘I still get a thrill when I go into a store and see my products on the shelves – and when people take photographs from abroad with my products in their stores. It spurs you on to develop more products.’

Quintin Bromfield, from Barnardos South, added: ‘It is very much appreciated.’