Hospice more than doubles its 'cuddle beds'

Nikki Smith's partner Darren Powell died just over a year ago from cancer, but they were able to spend his last few months together in a so-called "cuddle bed" at St Leonard's Hospice in York.

The specially adapted beds allow partners and family members to lie side by side, because they can be adjusted so they are wider than traditional hospice beds.

At the time, Mr Powell, who was 57 and from Camblesforth near Selby, said: "We know we're not going to be here for long together, so to have the time together, it means a lot to us both."

He died at home 10 days later.

A year later and Ms Smith is now working at the hospice in a job she said she "absolutely loved" and her late partner would have been "incredibly proud" of her now helping and caring for others.

"I feel like I should have always been here," she said.

"I don't have bad memories of this place, it's always been good memories of when Darren was in here.

"The first day the staff were just amazing, obviously a lot of then knew me from when when I was in here with Darren, it shocked a few of them because they didn't know I was going to come and work here."

Ms Smith described the hospice as a "brilliant place to work" and it felt like she was "giving something back."

At the end of last year the hospice took delivery of four cuddle beds thanks to the efforts of Louise Ryan and her family from York, who raised almost £60,000 following the death of her husband Nick in 2023.

Since then they have gone on to raise even more money, and another local family have been fundraising too.

As a result the hospice has now raised enough money to buy nine cuddle beds.

Ms Ryan said: "I thought my sister-in-law was crazy when we started raising money for one - so to end up with this many is absolutely fabulous."

Clare Burton and her family raised the money to pay for another of the cuddle beds by doing a sponsored bed push from the hospice to Church Fenton near Tadcaster - a distance of about 14 miles.

Her late husband Gary also received care at St Leonard's.

Ms Burton said: "We raised £22,500, everyone was just so generous, that we could give a cuddle bed to the hospice was just the best present ever."

Oxfordshire-based Montcalm Care, which supplies the beds, said it had seen an a 50% increase in orders for the beds over the past year from hospices all over the UK.

In 2026 St Leonard's Hospice is planning another big fundraiser that it hopes will raise enough for another five, meaning everyone staying in the hospice would have access to one.

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