MP welcomes £700,000 grant for hospice

Lincoln MP Hamish Falconer has welcomed a grant of £700,000 to St Barnabas Hospice for improvements to its end-of-life care provision.

The hospice, which has its main centre on Lincoln’s Nettleham Road, has repeated it is feeling ‘financial pressures’ and that the grant is a one-off capital investment                                                                            that cannot be used to pay salaries or fund services.

The £709,550 grant is part of £75million raft of government funding for hospice to upgrade facilities and amenities to ensure ‘patients receive the highest quality end-of-life care in comfortable, dignified surroundings’.

The cash injection was first announced in May and confirmed earlier this week when the MP said: “St. Barnabas Lincolnshire Hospice provide such invaluable support in our community for people with life-limiting conditions and their loved ones and this government funding will make such a real difference.”

St Barnabas currently receives 44 per cent of its general operating budget with costs of £40,000 a day and pointed to its statement of May 15 this year that an ‘emerging trend of current and recurring operational deficits is not financially sustainable’.

At that time St Barnabas CEO Chris Wheway said: ““We are proud of the work we do, and proud of the people who make it possible. We are considering every option to manage our resources wisely and reduce costs where possible, introducing a mutually agreed resignation scheme (MARS) and exploring new income generation opportunities.

“We are working hard to ensure that St Barnabas Hospice remains here for future generations, offering compassionate, dignified care to those who need us most.”