Visit by Sir John Whittingdale MP

Before his visit, Sir John had recently showed his support for Farleigh when he met with our Chief Executive, Michelle Kabia, at a Westminster event about hospice funding, organised by Hospice UK.

It raised awareness of the financial pressures that hospices are facing due to surging costs and increasing demand for hospice care from an ageing population. This is not sustainable and Hospice UK is encouraging the government to support its four-point plan for fair funding for hospices, so they can be there for everyone who needs care and support, now and in the future.

On 6 May, Michelle was delighted to take Sir John on a tour of our specialist facilities and introduce him to hospice staff, volunteers, patients and families.The tour began in the hospice’s gym where Sir John joined a seated exercise class for patients with breathing difficulties, run by Specialist Physiotherapist, Natasha Ransome, and Associate Practitioner, Tarnya Robey.

He was also introduced to volunteer Mike Hubble, who runs a drop-in group for carers.

Patricia Rickman told him about the excellent care that her husband received both at home and at our specialist Inpatient Unit (IPU). She described how she trusted Farleigh’s carers to look after him, which meant she could spend some much-needed time with her daughter, knowing he would be safe with them.

The tour continued with a visit to the IPU where Sir John met with our Head of Nursing, Inpatient Care and Education, Kate Tighe and Inpatient Ward Manager, Nicola Hammond.

He was particularly impressed with our three new bedrooms, which will help us to meet the complex needs of more local people who require palliative and end of life care. The building work was paid for from a government grant for capital expenditure, which could only be spent on improvements to our buildings, equipment and infrastructure.

He also visited our café – which has recently been refurbished with this capital grant – where he met Julie Renvois, who has been fundraising for Farleigh for over 30 years.

Throughout the tour, Sir John talked with Michelle Kabia, our Medical Director, Dr Eva Lew, and our Director of Income Generation, Jennifer Danson, about the care that Farleigh provides at the hospice and in his constituency. He heard about the impact of the growing demand for hospice care across mid Essex and the need for more local funding and fundraising.

Michelle Kabia said, “Thank you to Sir John Whittingdale for visiting Farleigh Hospice and showing such a keen interest in the compassionate care that we provide here and in homes within the Maldon district. We really appreciate the support he has shown for Hospice UK’s campaign for fairer funding for hospices. His visit was a great opportunity to talk about this in more depth and also discuss the day-to-day challenges that Farleigh is facing to meet the increasing need for our care and support.”