Labour’s General Election candidate for Birmingham, Selly Oak, Steve McCabe has underlined the significance of renewed support from NHS England for a local children’s charity based in Selly Oak constituency.
Steve McCabe has been a long-term supporter of Acorns Children’s Hospice, which provides care for life-limited and life-threatened children and support for their families.
His comments come with the recent news that Acorns, which operates a hospice based in Selly Oak, is to receive a renewed NHS England grant for the next two years through the Children’s Hospice Grant (CHG).
Earlier this year, NHS England coordinated a consultation exercise with children’s hospices, amid some fears that the tough public funding environment might see the grant level fall.
Mr McCabe, who last week took place in a fundraising skydive for Acorns this Saturday (29 April), was one of several local MPs to write and highlight to NHS England the importance of renewing their funding to children’s hospices like Acorns, and today welcomed the news.
Steve said:
“Acorns is the largest provider of children’s hospice services anywhere in England and the Children’s Hospice Grant which is provided through NHS England is a critical source of income for them. I have seen first-hand the remarkable work Acorns carry out at their Selly Oak Hospice in this constituency, offering support and comfort to children and families in the most challenging situations. I wrote to NHS England in January to raise my concerns about the potential impact of proposed changes to funding received thought the Children’s Hospice Grant.
“I am extremely pleased to hear that NHS England have now confirmed the renewal of the Children’s Hospice Grant for a further 2 years and to learn that the allocation formula will remain unchanged until a more in-depth review can take place. It is crucial that any future decisions regarding funding clearly recognize the real level of demand for these vital services.”
Toby Porter, Chief Executive at Acorns, said:
“The Children’s Hospice Grant is a critical source of income for us, which directly translates into services delivered to children and their families, entirely in keeping with the strategic as well as compassionate intent of the NHS England grant. We are therefore extremely grateful for Steve’s continued support of Acorns Children’s Hospice and his endeavors throughout this consultation process.
“It costs Acorns nearly £10 million every year to provide our services. We rely heavily on the generosity of the public to provide this care, but the NHS contribution is a critical compliment to that.
“Approximately 70p of every pound received by Acorns is donated by the public, with 10p received from this Children’s Hospice Grant, and 20p from local NHS contributions. The renewal of this grant is good news for Acorns and good news for our supporters, because it will make their donations go even further.”
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