The News Shopper celebrated the start of 2002 with a new campaign to get fair funding for children's hospices. Now we are taking our fight nationwide ...

In January we set our sights on the Department of Health and its lack of funding for children's hospices.

While hospices for adults get between a third and a half of their running costs from NHS funds itself a woefully inadequate amount children's hospices get only four per cent.

And many get nothing at all.

Our campaign is aimed at putting children's hospices and their hospice care at home on the same funding basis as those for adults.

Most children's hospices rely almost entirely on donations and fundraising.

Demelza House in Kent, which takes children from all over the News Shopper area, needs £1.6m to keep going.

At the beginning of last year it faced a cash crisis so large, it was forced to close half of its eight beds and make some of its specialist staff redundant.

Fortunately fundraising is now back on target and the beds and staff are back.

The Ellenor Foundation which provides children with hospice care at home locally, is in the same position.

It has to raise £350,000 a year.

But they are not alone. There are 22 children's hospices across the country, providing 175 beds and all of them have to raise millions of pounds each year to keep going.

That is why the News Shopper has now taken its campaign nationwide.

Our sister papers, in Newsquest across the country, are taking up the campaign on behalf of their own local children's hospices and hospice care at home.

The 15 MPs who represent the News Shopper area gave their full backing to the campaign asking questions in the House of Commons and writing to Health Secretary Alan Milburn.

Now News Shopper has written to every MP in the House of Commons asking for their support in persuading the Department of Health to put funding for children's hospices on an equal footing with adults.

Among the many messages of support was one from the Father of the House, Scottish MP Tam Dalyell, who told us: "I don't normally support campaigns."

He said: "But I will make an exception in this case, because it is a good one."

He has promised to raise the issue with the Scottish Parliament, which is responsible for health funding in Scotland.

The Tories' shadow Health Secretary Dr Liam Fox has also given his support.

Already dozens of MPs have contacted us pledging their help.

HOW TO HELP

You can also help in the campaign by writing to your MP, urging him or her to table questions in the House of Commons, and write to Health Secretary Alan Milburn asking for fair funding for children's hospices and hospice care at home. Or write to Mr Milburn yourself at the House of Commons SW1.

To donate money to Demelza House or the Ellenor Foundation you can send cheques made payable to the charity, to News Shopper. Mega House, Crest View Drive, Orpington, Kent BR5 1BT.

July 9, 2002 12:30