Emergency funding provides lifeline for Black Country hospices

Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a £750 million support package for charities amid concerns many would struggle to survive.

Charitable events have been curtailed by the lockdown and charity shops have closed, cutting off the biggest sources of funding.

Compton Care in Wolverhampton and Acorns, which has children's hospices in Walsall and Birmingham, had both experienced a sharp drop in donations and the Government support has come as a relief to bosses.

Acorns' Walsall hospice was already fighting for survival, and aiming to raise £2 million, before the crisis.

Of the total, £200m will be diverted to hospcies. Amounts individual hospices will receive have yet to be finalised.

Acorns chief executive Toby Porter said: “The pandemic has greatly reduced our income at Acorns both from fundraising and from our shops, as it has for all charities. We are reassured by this major announcement and look forward to finding out how this Government support will be allocated.

“Hospices such as Acorns have been facing an impossible situation, with our care needed more than ever because of the nature of this emergency, but seeing our charitable income dropping away so suddenly and so sharply. Warnings over the past month about the risk to services provided by charities and to the future of the charities themselves were not exaggerated."

Compton Care chairman Professor Ros Keeton said: “This is a very welcome and much needed contribution to the costs that palliative care providers like Compton will incur to keep inpatient beds open and take on additional community care work all to help free up valuable NHS resources.

“At this stage we are unsure how the funds will be distributed or what Compton Care will receive.

“Compton has suffered a huge collapse in income and while every penny of this Government funding helps, we aren’t out of the woods yet.

“We are estimated to lose hundreds of thousands of pounds of income over the coming months, vital income that goes towards keeping our services open and providing essential care for our patients and families.

“We urge our wonderful community and fabulous supporters to keep us in their hearts and minds. Please, if you can, help us by making a donation, joining our lottery or taking part in/organising your own virtual event. You can find out more at comptoncare.org.uk

“Your contribution will enable us to continue to care, for as long as possible.”