Sir Gareth Southgate opens £21.9m hospice project

Former England football manager Sir Gareth Southgate has officially opened a £21.9m redevelopment project at a West Yorkshire children's hospice.

It follows a public donation appeal for The Build scheme to extend and refurbish Martin House in Boston Spa near Wetherby.

Sir Gareth attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the hospice earlier, saying it offered "vital support for local families".

The project aims to provide a "modern, family focused hospice" for the 550 children and young people in its care every year.

The hospice, established in 1987, cares for children and young people with life-shortening conditions across West, North and East Yorkshire.

Sir Gareth, an ambassador for the charity, said: "It genuinely transforms the lives of young people with life-shortening conditions every single day.

"I hope that I'm part of the furniture when I come here, there's no airs and graces - we all try to muck in.

"I'm just here to help and to listen to families and hear their stories.

"We understand how difficult it must be for families living every day with children with these complex needs and conditions.

"You just try and add to that warmth that exists here."

The redevelopment project is designed to safeguard the future of children's palliative care across the region, the charity said.

Caroline and Michael Lambert's family have been supported by Martin House since their daughter Evelyn suffered a severe brain injury during birth.

Caroline described Martin House as being somewhere "that is full of fun and life", adding: "It is about living comfortably, not strictly about dying."

The Build includes a new children's wing, which opened in February 2025, with the rest of the hospice refurbished and extended.

New facilities include a hydrotherapy pool, a wellbeing suite and an education centre.

Caroline described staff at the hospice as "really special".

"The support that we got at home from the community team is absolutely invaluable, because it helps you adjust to life at home with a complex medical needs child," she said.

Their daughter Evelyn suffered about 40 seizures a day, with hospice staff teaching her parents how to use specialist medical equipment at home.

Michael said the team "almost became part of the family".

"They often would look after Evelyn briefly so that Caroline could go out for a run or just do normal things as a family," he said.

Evelyn died when she was seven months old in 2021.

Since then, her parents have helped to raise more than £125,000 for the hospice.

Fundraising efforts have included marathons, dragon boat races, the Three Peaks Challenge and a walk from Liverpool to Leeds.

Caroline said the driving force had been to "keep talking about Evelyn, to keep her present in our lives" as well as giving back to the hospice.

The family had two stays at Martin House, giving them "a chance to be just parents and not nurses or carers", Michael said.

"It meant that we could have time as a family, it was an amazing place to go."

"The Build is so much more than bricks and mortar," said Clair Holdsworth, chief executive at Martin House.

"It's about creating a modern, family focused hospice that matches the extraordinary quality of care our teams provide every day."

The new education centre will expand specialist palliative care training across the region, the charity said.

Michael added: "We're both incredibly proud that we've been able to play a small part in helping to get The Build together."

Sir Gareth said he was proud to be involved with the charity and its work.

"I've been blessed to attend so many types of help, support and therapy that take place here and talked to the families involved," he said.

"You see their love for Martin House and their thanks for the staff here and it's lovely that we're now able to provide a brand new building for them that's future-proofed."

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