Emergency funding plea to keep Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice open

The plea was first made earlier in the lockdown to keep the hospice, which provides vital end of life care to Peterborough residents, as Sue Ryder faced a huge funding shortfall.

While residents have stepped up to help raise money, vital funds are still needed.

Allison Mann, director of Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice said; “A few months ago we were forced to launch an emergency fundraising appeal in order to ensure that Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice could continue to provide the expert and compassionate palliative care we are so proud of.

“The Coronavirus pandemic is having a huge impact on us. All of our shops closed overnight and our fundraising activities had to stop immediately. This resulted in a deeply concerning drop in income and for the very first time our future was in doubt.

“We received the most wonderful response to our emergency appeal from the people of Peterborough who have so far raised more than £324,000 for us. I would like to take this opportunity to say a heartfelt thank you to you and your readers from all of us at Sue Ryder. We are so very grateful for the support you have all shown us.

“Unfortunately, our struggle is not yet over. Our fundraising events remain cancelled for the rest of this year, we have no clear indication of how long it will take for our shops to return to normal trading levels and we continue to incur the additional cost of purchasing PPE for our doctors and nurses.

“As the Prime Minister recently announced, £3billion is being made available in order to support health services in the UK, but this will not include hospices. This means that, even if we are able to avoid a second wave of this dreadful virus, by winter Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice will be struggling again financially.

“Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice is anticipating a funding gap of £1,600,000 (£1.6m) for the rest of this financial year alone, which is why we still so desperately need the support of our local community.

“We know that times are tough for everybody at the moment, so please be reassured that every bit really does help.”

People can donate at sueryder.org/donate