St Nicholas Hospice Care uses Hospice Care Week to highlight national hospice funding crisis

To coincide with the national Hospice Care Week, St Nicholas Hospice Care is launching a public campaign to draw attention to the severe challenges posed by unstable funding models, which are impacting the hospice’s ability to deliver sustainable services to the community.

The campaign aims to raise awareness about the critical need for consistent and fair funding to ensure that patients across West Suffolk and Thetford receive the high-quality care they deserve.

For over 40 years, St Nicholas Hospice Care has been a cornerstone of compassionate care, providing essential support to patients and families facing dying, death and grief.

However, rising costs and unpredictable funding streams are making it increasingly difficult for the hospice to plan and maintain the level of service the community relies on.

“Our ability to deliver care should not be compromised by financial instability,” said Linda McEnhill, Chief Executive Officer at St Nicholas Hospice Care. “Hospices like ours are facing a growing financial strain, as funding sources become less reliable, and costs continue to rise.

“This campaign is about highlighting the urgent need for a sustainable funding model that allows us to focus on what we do best – caring for our patients.”

For St Nic’s the loss of an £80k annual grant for palliative care services in Thetford has made a difficult situation worse. While St Nicholas Hospice Care serves both West Suffolk and Thetford, the Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board (N&W ICB) is responsible for commissioning palliative care services in the Thetford, part of our service catchment area.

Linda said: “On 27 March 2024, just before the new financial year, the Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board (N&W ICB) cut our statutory funding and the loss of our £80k annual grant has created a significant funding gap at a time when financial pressures are already high. This decision was made without consulting with us, or other key stakeholders.”

“Our mission is to ensure that no one in Thetford faces dying, death, and grief alone. However, recent funding cuts put this mission at risk.”

“Inadequate funding places St Nic’s in a very difficult position and we cannot let funding cuts compromise end-of-life care. In this case without warning the people of Thetford were left at risk of being left without end-of-life care services.”

The charity is calling for people to write to their MPs to show support and add their voices to the national debate for fairer funding for hospices like St Nic’s.

“We need the community’s help to secure a future where hospice care is not just available, but sustainable,” added Linda. “Together, we can make sure that St Nicholas Hospice Care remains a vital resource for those who need us most.”

It costs around £8 million to run the hospice each year. That’s equivalent to £22,000 per day. St Nic’s receives some statutory funding, which currently covers around 20% of their costs. But they still need to generate a further £17,500 of income per day.

Hospice Care Week, organised by Hospice UK, is an annual event that shines a light on the work of hospices across the UK, showcasing the difference they make in their communities.

This year the week’s theme is all about hospice retail, and the role it plays in funding hospice services. St Nic’s wants to celebrate the brilliant contributions its retail teams make.

Adding further weight to the need for fairer more sustainable funding, Hospice UK argues that more money is now spent buying second-hand goods in hospice shops than hospices receive from the Government.

To find out more here.