Urgent call to save end of life care as 20% of hospices threatened by cuts

Hospice UK, which represents more than 200 hospices across the UK, is issuing an urgent warning today as the financial stability of hospices across the UK reaches a critical point.  

The charity’s most recent survey of their members reveals that at least a fifth of UK hospices have either cut services in the last year or are planning to do so.  

For several years, hospices have faced growing financial pressures. As costs have surged, local communities have stepped up to support their hospices. However, the modest amounts of state funding that hospices receive have not kept pace with running costs. The state of the hospice sector’s finances is now the worst it has been for 20 years. 

Hospices are being forced to cut services: inpatient beds are being cut, community services are decreasing, with fewer staff to visit patients in their homes. Vital health and social care staff are being made redundant when their roles are more needed than ever. 

Hospices are collectively cutting costs by millions of pounds, with cuts taking place across inpatient and community services, plus therapy, counselling and other services, and across the whole of the UK. 

The new Labour Government has rightly made health and social care a priority, with a focus on reducing pressures in the NHS and on improving care in local neighbourhoods. Hospices are ideally placed to help, and stand ready to do so, with the right support. 

With hundreds of new MPs and a new government in place, Hospice UK is urging the public to write to their local MP, highlighting the critical financial situation of hospices and urging the new government for support. 

Toby Porter, CEO of Hospice UK says: “Too many hospices are in crisis. The small and wildly variable amount of state funding they receive has failed to keep pace with rising costs. Many hospices are therefore running deficits which can only mean one thing – more cuts to essential care services, or even service closures. 

“We’re already seeing redundancies at some major hospices, usually those serving communities in more deprived parts of the UK, where charitable fundraising is harder. At Hospice UK, we fear more will follow.  

"Cuts due to a simple lack of funding to maternity, dentistry, or GP services would be unthinkable, yet end-of-life services are being slashed due to a broken funding system. 

“The timing couldn't be worse, with demand for end-of-life care increasing. 

“Perhaps the most frustrating element of what we are seeing is that pressure will increase on hospitals and other NHS providers it hospices remain underfunded. When hospices cut services, patients are pushed back into the NHS, ultimately costing the taxpayer more.  

“We know that our health and social care services in the UK are under immense strain, yet thousands of hospice staff are desperate to help, if only hospices could be properly funded. 

“It is critical that the new government understand the scale of the challenge facing hospices, and ensure they are supported so they can continue to provide their vital care for dying people, for now and forever.” 

Deborah Paris, Executive Chairman of Rowans Hospice in South East Hampshire said: “The current gap between our costs and income has risen significantly, which is obviously not a sustainable position. We have met with NHS commissioners to negotiate urgent, additional funding, and used the opportunity to re-emphasise the significant contribution that the hospice provides and the work that will fall to the NHS, if we must reduce our capacity.  

“Unfortunately, as further funding has not been forthcoming, and following a range of earlier efficiencies across the organisation, we have had to reduce the level of our provision and make some staff redundant. These are heart-breaking decisions to have made, but we have no other choice but to take these steps. 

“Like many other hospices across the country, who are facing financial challenges, we are simply asking for a fairer and more equitable funding system to stop the post code lottery that exists for end-of-life care.  Surely everyone has the right to receive compassionate care at the end of their lives.” 

Jeremy Lune, CEO of Prospect Hospice in Swindon said: “It's incredibly frustrating to see hospice care suffer due to a lack of funding. At Prospect Hospice, we've had to reduce the number of beds in our inpatient unit to six, despite having room for 12. This decision isn't enough, as we still face a £1 million deficit. The need for our palliative and end-of-life care is growing, while funding is dwindling, creating an unsustainable situation. 

Reduced hospice services mean tough decisions about who qualifies for care, potentially leaving more people without the specialised support they deserve. Families might struggle to manage a loved one's pain at home, and patients could miss out on emotional support during their final days. The knock-on effect on already overstretched NHS services would be catastrophic, depriving people of the chance for a good death, surrounded by loved ones in their chosen environment.” 

Gareth Pierce, CEO of Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice in Huddersfield said: “If the NHS England funding is not renewed, we would need to consider reducing services across the board, including much needed respite and short breaks for families – services they can’t get anywhere else. 

“We might be forced to consider which of our services might need to stop all together – something that we never want to have to do, but with the current outlook, that is a very real possibility. 

“As the need for our services grows, we’re at risk of having to turn children and families away, something that goes against our promise that no family should have to face the loss of their child alone." 

Simon Fuller, CEO of Birmingham Hospice, said: “The prospect of having to make highly skilled specialist clinicians and support staff redundant is totally unpalatable. Birmingham Hospice has been working with Hospice UK and other hospices nationally to seek support to address the financial challenges across the sector. 

“There is a growing need for palliative and end-of-life care and the NHS is unable to meet the huge demands on its beds. Most people do not want to die in hospital and hospices provide outstanding services that support people to die in a place of their choosing.”