Could you help your local hospice?
At a time when hospices across the UK are grappling with significant financial challenges, Rowcroft Hospice is launching its ‘Sponsor a Nurse’ regular giving scheme in its latest move to increase income. This vital initiative aims to secure the future of hospice care in South Devon by encouraging the local community to make regular monthly donations to support Rowcroft’s skilled nurses and clinical teams.
While the charity has warmly welcomed the government’s announcement in December of additional funding for hospices in England, it still remains unclear how much of this funding will reach Rowcroft, or if it will be enough to cover the financial impact of the recent Budget changes. These changes have led to an estimated increase of £225,000 in annual costs for the hospice due to rises in employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and the national living wage.
“While we don’t yet know the details about how much extra funding will be available for Rowcroft, we’re hoping that it will help towards some of our escalating costs,” said Mark Hawkins, CEO of Rowcroft Hospice. “However, the majority of our income still comes from the generosity of our local community, and we continue to rely heavily upon their amazing support. Our new ‘Sponsor a Nurse’ fundraising initiative offers a super easy way for our community to support us through regular monthly donations that will be a lifeline in keeping our care going.”
Of the £11 million required annually to provide Rowcroft’s care, only 24% is funded by the NHS. The remaining 76% is reliant on the community’s generosity through donations, events, gifts in Wills, Rowcroft’s shops and cafés, and its Lottery.
Vicky Bartlett, Rowcroft’s Director of Patient Care, commented:
“Our loyal community has always been there for us, and we’re incredibly grateful for their unwavering support. But now, as we face these financial challenges, we need their help again. By sponsoring a nurse through a regular monthly donation, your contribution will directly enable our skilled nurses and clinical teams to provide vital end-of-life care, ensuring that your loved ones and neighbours receive the support they deserve at a time when they need it most.”
Making an impact
The difference Rowcroft’s care makes is profoundly felt by families across South Devon, including that of Paul Holmes, a former Torquay United football star who received specialist care from Rowcroft’s Community Team before transitioning to the hospice’s Inpatient Unit in Torquay, where he passed away weeks later. Paul’s widow, Kate Holmes, said:
“Rowcroft’s nurses and care teams were amazing. The care was tailored to all of our needs. They had time to reassure, to alleviate fears, to explain, and they created a bond with us straight away. Their care enabled us as a family to continue to make memories with Paul, to feel safe, secure, loved, and cared for. We will be forever grateful.”
Lesley Edwards, a Rowcroft nurse who cared for Paul, shared her motivation for her work:
“I became a palliative care nurse to make a difference. End-of-life care deserves as much compassion and value as the beginning of life. It’s more than a job; it’s a commitment to making a positive impact on the patients and families we care for.”
Rowcroft’s multi-disciplinary team provides comfort, pain relief, and emotional support to thousands of patients and their families each year, whether in their own homes or in Rowcroft’s Inpatient Unit.
“You can make such a difference to local families by sponsoring a nurse,” said Rowcroft’s Director of Patient Care Vicky Bartlett. “Your monthly gift will help fund crucial services such as home visits from Community Nurse Specialists, day-to-day care in our Inpatient Unit in Torquay, support from a specialist ‘nurse prescriber’ who can prescribe timely medications out-of-hours to ensure that patients’ needs are met whenever they arise, and overnight support by our Hospice at Home team for patients across South Devon in their own homes, ensuring comfort, pain relief, and emotional support when it matters most.”
To find out how you can sponsor a nurse, please go to: www.rowcrofthospice.org.uk/nurse or call the hospice on 01803 217642 to speak to a member of the hospice team.