Emily Darlington MP welcomes biggest investment into hospices and end of life care in a generation.
The government has confirmed the release of £25 million for upgrades and refurbishments this week for hospices across England, including in the South East. An additional £75 million will be available from April as part of the largest investment in hospices in a generation. The funding will modernise facilities, improve IT systems and ensure patients receive the highest quality care.
Families in Milton Keynes Central will start to see improved end-of-life care as the government brings in major upgrades to hospice services nationwide. After lobbying hard on behalf of Willen Hospice, local MP Emily Darlington welcomed the biggest investment in a generation for hospices, ensuring that hospices can continue to deliver the highest quality end of life care possible for their patients, families, and loved ones.
The improvements will help ensure that during life’s most challenging moments, patients and their loved ones receive the highest quality care in the most appropriate and comfortable settings.
Hospices will begin receiving £25 million for facility upgrades and refurbishments from today as part of the biggest investment into hospices in a generation. Willen Hospice will receive £144,000. Emily Darlington MP said the funding ‘will make a real difference for hospices in our community that do such a wonderful job supporting local families’.
The cash will be distributed immediately for the 2024/25 financial year, with a further £75 million to follow from April.
The immediate cash injection, allocated through Hospice UK from the Department of Health and Social Care, will enable hospices to purchase essential new medical equipment, undertake building refurbishments, improve technology, upgrade facilities for patients and families and implement energy efficiency measures. The larger £75 million investment will support more substantial capital projects - including major building works and facility modernisation - throughout the next financial year.
The cash forms a key part of the government’s Plan for Change, improving care in the community where people need it most.
Emily Darlington, Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes Central, said: “Every single family in Milton Keynes has a personal story of somebody they know – a friend, or a family member, or a colleague – who benefitted from the services provided by Willen Hospice in my constituency. Not only do they support those approaching the end of their lives, but they support those around that person as they face a very different future for themselves and their families. I know that this additional £144k in funding will make a huge difference to their work, and with the renewed focus in Westminster on terminal illness and end-of-life care in recent months, I have read hundreds upon hundreds of letters from my constituents detailing what the local hospice has done for them in their darkest days, and asking what else we can do for them. Everybody deserves a good death, with the dignity and comfort of patients an upmost priority – that’s what this money will do.”
Minister for Care, Stephen Kinnock MP, said: “This is the largest investment in a generation to help transform hospice facilities across England. From upgrading patient rooms to improving gardens and outdoor spaces, this funding will make a real difference to people at the end of their lives. “Hospices provide invaluable care and support when people need it most and this funding boost will ensure they are able to continue delivering exceptional care in better, modernised facilities.”
