The Express & Star has launched a major appeal to secure the future of an Acorns children’s hospice.

 

As a front page piece on the Weekend edition explained: The charity’s Black Country centre has won a temporary reprieve from closure.

 

It is a decision that has potentially saved 60 jobs and ensured scores of families can continue to benefit from its world-class care.

 

But £2 million must now be found to bridge a gap in NHS funding – and without that money the Walsall-based hospice will be forced to close its doors.

 

Today a major appeal was launched, with individuals, groups and businesses asked to help save a service that provides vital practical and emotional support to hundreds of families of seriously ill children.

 

 

The race is on to raise money as quickly as possible so the proposal to close the hospice can be scrapped completely.Donating is easy and can be done in seconds through a specially-created text line.

 

The Walsall hospice was due to close in the autumn. But in response to the controversy about the crisis at Acorns, the government revealed NHS funding for children’s hospices will double to £25 million by 2023/24.

 

That decision gives the Walsall hospice a lifeline – but Acorns must now plug the financial gap until then if the centre on Walstead Road is to survive.

 

The charity, which supports 230 families and also has hospices in Birmingham and Worcester, is hopeful the generosity shown in the form of various fundraising events across the Black Country since its funding black hole was first revealed will now be replicated on a larger scale.

 

Acorns today said if the £2 million target is reached “it will lead to the closure proposal being completely withdrawn”.

 

All money raised will be spent on delivering care for children and families at the Walsall hospice, the charity said.

 

Overjoyed families who have depended on the hospice to care for their sick children and dedicated staff welcomed the news that the immediate closure of Walsall’s Acorns had been postponed.

 

Acorns chief executive Toby Porter said: “We are deeply grateful for the new pledges of NHS support nationally and locally, and for the recognition they convey of the importance of Acorns children’s hospice care to local children and families.

 

“These pledges have created a lifeline for our vital services in the Black Country. We will now do all we can to raise the final funds we need to secure the hospice’s longer-term future by appealing to the local community for their support.”

 

Acorns dropped a bombshell in June when it announced rising costs and falling donations meant it had been left with no option but to close the Walsall hospice.

 

Officials have since been overwhelmed by the level of support, both in terms of cash donations and pressure on the Government to unlock extra funding for children’s hospices.

 

The funding breakthrough followed intensive campaigning by families of children cared for at the hospice, including a visit to Westminster by Mark Lyttle, the father of 11-year-old Isabella, who lost her brave battle with cancer in April.

 

Mr Lyttle delivered a passionate address to Black Country MPs and the director from NHS England responsible for children’s hospice funding.

 

Mr Porter said: “On behalf of everyone at Acorns, I would like to say a heartfelt thanks to the families, the local community and their elected representatives, and NHS commissioners who have shown such appreciation for the invaluable children’s hospice care provided by our team at Walsall, and such passion for it to be available to the families that need it in the future. 

 

“We have been truly humbled and hugely encouraged by the recognition of the importance that our Walsall children’s hospice has to the Black Country community.

 

“A charity like Acorns can only operate with the support of the local community – who we now need more than ever to help us continue providing our vital care to any child or family in the region that needs us.”