DON'T LEAVE HOSPICE CARE TO CHANCE: PIPPA HEYLINGS MP THANKS LOCAL HOSPICE HEROES AND PRESSES FOR FAIR FUNDING

As Hospice Care Week gets underway, Pippa Heylings MP is thanking the incredible staff and volunteers at South Cambridgeshire's hospice and pressing the ICB and Government to restore funding to the Arthur Rank Hospice so that beds aren’t cut in April.

Pippa Heylings is celebrating Hospice Care Week runs from 5 to 11 October, and this year's theme, "Don't leave hospice care to chance". The week shines a light on a postcode lottery in end-of-life care. Nearly 1 in 3 people who need end-of-life care still don't receive it, and because most hospice funding comes from charitable donations rather than the NHS, whether that care is available too often depends on where you live.

Pippa has been at the forefront of the fight to save nine of the 23 inpatient beds at Arthur Rank Hospice, which were put at risk by an £829,000 NHS funding cut. Alongside fellow Liberal Democrat MPs Charlotte Cane and Ian Sollom, she launched a petition signed by more than 15,000 people and delivered it to Downing Street.

Pippa is now demanding that the ICB and Government restore funding to Arthur Rank so that it can keep providing high-quality hospice care to South Cambridgeshire.

Pippa Heylings MP said:

"This Hospice Care Week, I want to say a huge thank you to the staff and volunteers at our local hospices, especially Arthur Rank Hospice in South Cambridgeshire. They help people live well right to the very end, and they support families through the hardest of times with such kindness and dedication. So many residents have shared with me the care their loved ones received at Arthur Rank Hospice, and it is clear just how much it means to our community.

"But nearly 1 in 3 people still don't get the end of life care they need. With most hospice funding coming from charity, whether that care is there for you too often depends on where you live. That simply isn't fair, and that's why this year's message is so important: we must not leave hospice care to chance.

“I've been fighting to save the beds at Arthur Rank Hospice, and I won't stop until they are secured for the long term. Our community stepped up in an extraordinary way to keep those beds open, but families shouldn't have to rely on fundraising for dignified end of life care. That's why I'm pressing the Government for fair, long-term funding, so every hospice can be there for everyone who needs it.”