Hospice faces £10m shortfall for expansion plan

A children's hospice has said it is short of about £10m to expand its site.

Claire House wants to extend its campus at the former Carmelite monastery in West Derby in Liverpool.

But to complete the expansion plan, it needs public donations, its chief executive David Pastor said.

"We're taking a bit of a risk here to get on with the building and we don't necessarily have all the funds in place at the moment," he said.

Pastor said being able to expand the hospice site would mean it could double the number of children it could help from 500 to 1000 a year and provide round-the-clock end-of-life care facility.

Claire House provides specialist nursing and end-of-life care for children and young people from birth to age 25, and currently has a hospice in Wirral next to Clatterbridge Hospital.

In June the charity was given planning permission to expand its site in West Derby, Liverpool.

"We look after more than 100 children at the end of their lives every year, that demand is only going up, and there is no 24/7 end of life care facility in Liverpool," he said.

"This is about giving Liverpool's children, young adults and families the same access to hospice care, the same choice and the same support that families on the Wirral already have."

Plans for the site include two dedicated end-of-life care bedrooms and six respite bedrooms, giving children and young adults.

There are also plans for two suites to give families a peaceful and private place to spend time together after a child has died.

Pastor said the service on the site near to Alder Hey Children's Hospital was "absolutely vital" but would also be a place where children and their families could create special memories.

"Yes, we are going to have some sad times on the hospice site, but also some amazing memories created for families," he said.

He added: "Although we do some really, really difficult work, we also do a lot of fun stuff like complementary therapies for families.

"We do play and we've got hydrotherapy pool built into the plans. We want to make sure that we are here for many, many years to come."

The site was previously occupied by Carmelite nuns before it was taken over by the charity.

The original building will be maintained for office space and training facilities with a new building planned for state-of-the-art care facilities.

The new site is planned to open in the summer of 2029.

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