Derian House 25th anniversary: Call for Lancashire's MPs to provide more funding

Representatives from Chorley-based children's hospice, Derian House, are calling on Lancashire MPs to allow more funding for its vital services.
David Robinson and Julie Atherton at Derian House  mark the launch of its 25th anniversary campaignDavid Robinson and Julie Atherton at Derian House  mark the launch of its 25th anniversary campaign
David Robinson and Julie Atherton at Derian House mark the launch of its 25th anniversary campaign

The charity, which offers respite and end-of-life care for more than 350 children and young people in the North West, costs £4m to run each year - but less than 10 per cent of that is funded by the government and NHS.

For the remaining 90 per cent of vital funding, the charity must rely upon the generosity of its supporters.

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David Robinson, chief executive of Derian House, said: “Derian House saves the NHS literally millions of pounds every year. But we are forced to rely on our supporters to come up with £4m every single year just to keep the doors open.“Our families tell us that the services we offer are a lifeline. It’s not just about supporting the children and young people, but also looking after the whole family. We offer a range of wellbeing services, sibling support and generally provide a safe haven for our families. “Our goal is to make sure our children make the most of every moment and create happy memories with their families. “It is hugely unfair that children’s hospices receive significantly less financial support from the government than adult hospices.”

Mr Robinson was joined by Derian’s clinical director Lynn Grayson and communications and marketing manager Caroline Taylor for the trip to the House of Commons yesterday at the meeting organised by Chorley MP Sir Lindsay Hoyle, a long-time supporter of the charity.MPs due to attend the meeting were Graham Jones (Haslingden and Hyndburn), Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire), Julie Cooper (Burnley), Andrew Stephenson (Pendle), Seema Kennedy (South Ribble), and Gordon Marsden (Blackpool South).

They were asked by the charity to join their fight for funding, and to have a louder voice in putting children’s palliative care on the agenda.

Seema KennedySeema Kennedy
Seema Kennedy

DERIAN HOUSE: A YEAR IN FIGURES (2017 to 2018)

Over 12 months Derian House looked after 371 families. This included:2,096 hours of respite care798 hours of pool fun in hydrotherapy sessions473 nights of families staying at the hospice432 Derian at Home visits133 nights of Sunflower Care (our Sunflower Rooms are where children lay at rest before their funeral)83 sessions of family-supervised Stay and Play visits81 day trips58 hours of bereavement support31 days of Schools Out (weekly club during school holidays)