Cash pledge welcomed by hospice

The children's hospice opened in 1998

A cash-starved hospice on Teesside has welcomed government plans to provide £27m to UK hospices over three years.

Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt said the cash would allow hospices to expand the delivery of palliative care.

Stockton-based Butterwick Hospice said it was struggling to find the £800,000 needed to maintain services this year.

Hospice chief executive Graham Leggatt-Chidgey, said the government announcement was "extremely good news" for hospices across the country.

Earlier this year staff from the hospice, which has been open for eight years, lobbied government ministers to bridge a funding gap created by the loss of grants from the New Opportunities Fund.

'Fairer funding'

Mr Leggatt-Chidgey said even though exact details of amounts to be given to hospices was yet to be determined, he remained hopeful it would be significant.

He said: "As yet we don't know how this funding will be allocated or what the eligibility criteria will be.

"However, this is extremely good news for children's hospices across the country.

"Children's hospices have been lobbying the government for fairer funding for some time with the help of the Association of Children's Hospices and many local MPs including local MPs Dari Taylor and Dr Ashok Kumar."

Barbara Gelb, chief executive of the Association of Children's Hospices (ACH) said: "This announcement is a significant step forward in the government's acknowledgement of the need for services to children who are going to die in childhood and their families.

"It is a vote of confidence in children's hospice services and the charity sector and will make a real difference to thousands of life-limited children and their families."