Redundancies loom at hospice charity

Farleigh Hospice has become the latest in the end-of-life care charity sector to announce cuts due to “unprecedented financial pressures” impacting UK hospices.

It is consulting with staff over changes to its bereavement services that will involve “a small number of redundances”.

The measures follow “years of inadequate NHS funding and declining legacy income combined with recent increases in National Insurance and the minimum wage, plus rising care costs and the cost of living”, said the charity in a statement this week.

“We do not want to say goodbye to any of our valued and dedicated colleagues but sadly we need to act now to ensure we can continue to serve our community for many years to come,” its statement added.

“Please be assured that our community teams continue to provide care and support to patients, and their families in their own homes and our Inpatient Unit is open and available.

“This has been a difficult time, with difficult decisions made, but we are confident that by taking action now, we will be more resilient and in a stronger financial position to be there for the people who need us.”

The announcement by Farleigh comes as staff from hospices across England gathered in Westminster this week calling on Prime Minister Keir Starmer and MPs to take “urgent action on funding”.

They are calling for £112.5m in additional recurring revenue funding for hospices.

Among other hospices to announce cuts in services due to funding concerns this year is Eastbourne based St Wilfrid’s Hospice.



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