Telford hospice cuts a 'kick in the teeth', says council leader

Severn Hospice said it had been forced to close two bed of the nine beds at its in-patient centre at Apley Castle, Telford, as a result of the £250,000 funding cut.

Councillor Shaun Davies, leader of Telford & Wrekin Council, described the cut as 'appalling news', adding that it would have a huge impact on people.

See also:

• Severn Hospice to reduce beds at Telford site as NHS funding is cut

Telford & Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) said that, from this month, its annual grant to the charity would be cut from £1.1 million to £850,000.

The charity said the cut would actually end up costing the NHS more than it saved as hospitals would now have to provide extra beds for dying patients.

Councillor Davies added that the CCG grant had not increased for the past 10 years, despite the cost of care rising significantly.

"This is appalling news," he said. "It is another terrible tangible sign that the Government has carelessly thrown our local health services into turmoil.

"Our hospital is under threat, there's a crisis with local GP appointment availability, out-of-hours GP services are being run on a shoestring, and now we find that the Government and local health service are forcing cuts which will result in the closure of hospice beds."

Councillor Davies said many people in the area had dug deep to support such the hospice.

"Not a week goes by in Telford & Wrekin where fundraisers are taking place with people selling cakes, climbing mountains, doing a sponsored walk or runs," he said.

"This decision is a kick in the teeth for those amazing people and communities, and the fact that the Government and local health commissioners fail to recognise the importance of this service is beyond words, and takes you beyond anger.

Hospice Cuts Factfile

• Telford & Wrekin CCG has reduced its funding from £1.1 million a year to £850,000.

• The cuts will see the number of beds on the ard at its centre in Telford reduced from nine to seven. The 18 beds at its centre in Bicton Heath, Shrewsbury, will remain unaffected.

• One-third of the hospice's funding comes from the NHS.

• The hospice costs £11 million a year to maintain, with £7 million of that coming from fundraising activities.

• At the moment it provides in-patient care for 217 people every year.

Councillor Davies said he had met with the hospice management, and would be writing to the borough's MPs to raise the issue.

Hospice chief executive Heather Palin said the cuts were first proposed in June last year, and had spent the past nine months making the case for funding to continue at its present level.

"We have been trying to engage with them, and persuade them of the consequences, and that it is the wrong decision, but they confirmed in March that the cuts were going ahead.

"We don't think they have listened. We appreciate they are in a difficult position, but this will not only be detrimental to the patients, it's also going to cost them more because it is far more expensive to keep a patient in a hospital bed than it is here.

"Hospitals are also not geared to providing the specialist palliative care that we provide here."

She said the CCG had suggested the hospice could use its reserves to make up the shortfall, but said this money was earmarked for specific needs and could not be diverted in this way.

Difficult

Dave Evans, accountable officer for Telford & Wrekin CCG, said the organisation had carried out a review of all its spending in voluntary service organisations.

"As a result of the review, the difficult decision was made that the CCG would not be able continue to provide some grants after March 2019," he said.

"The CCG is supporting organisations affected by the decision in seeking alternative funding from other potential sources.

"We would like to recognise the work that has been undertaken by these organisations and take this opportunity to thank the members, volunteers and staff for their contribution.”

The news comes just a fortnight after it said it faced its 'most challenging year' in balancing its books.

A report to the board said Telford and Wrekin CCG was intending to submit a balanced financial plan, however there is a risk it won't achieve its target.

The organisation needs to make £10.6 million in savings during the present financial year, said chief financial officer Jon Cooke.

But Mr Cooke said he did not yet know where £4 million of those savings would come from.