Hospice axes home care for end-of-life patients

A hospice in East Sussex has confirmed it will no longer offer "hands-on" care for people in their homes.

St Wilfrid's said its domiciliary care service, helping about 200 people with daily tasks including cooking, cleaning and personal care, will end in the next few weeks.

The charity said a shortfall in funding for domiciliary care has been increasing each year, and scrapping the service could save £1m in five years.

A spokesperson said: "To protect our future and make sure we are here for generations to come, we're making some difficult but necessary changes."

As part of those changes, St Wilfrid's is cutting 15 permanent roles and 16 flexible staff, but said it was looking to find alternative jobs for some elsewhere in the company.

Colin Twomey, the hospice's CEO, said he was "devastated to say goodbye to dedicated and compassionate team members".

"Our costs continue to increase whilst our funding is staying broadly the same," he said.

"This financial year we have budgeted for a loss of £1.5 million. Whilst we can manage this by carefully using our reserves, it simply isn't sustainable long-term."

St Wilfrid's said that despite the changes, the needs of its domiciliary care-users will still be met, but through a different company.

"This type of care is commissioned by the NHS, so the process will be the same as it always has been," a spokesperson said.

"They will assess a patient's needs and appoint an appropriate care provider. The difference is that we will no longer be one of those providers."

The NHS has been contacted for comment.

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