Don’t Nix Care: Protecting our Hospices

For too long, the vital role played by hospices in our health and care system has been overlooked. These organisations provide compassionate, dignified care for people at the end of life, they support their families, and they give vital relief to our overstretched NHS. Yet years of neglect and underfunding have left them in crisis. 

Under the last Conservative government vital services were put in jeopardy, with hospices and end of life charities forced to turn sick and dying people away. Between 2022 and 2024 hospices faced a £47 million real terms funding cut. A Hospice UK survey found that 7 in 10 of hospices believed they would need to cut services due to pressure from rising costs.

The Liberal Democrats believe no one should be denied dignity and comfort at the end of life because of where they live, or whether local charitable fundraising can plug the gap left by government.

Today our members have passed new policy which calls for urgent action to end the postcode lottery in hospice care, secure fair and sustainable funding, and protect the future of these essential services:

• End the postcode lottery by allocating NHS funding for hospice and palliative care according to demand, so that areas that struggle to raise charitable income are still properly supported.
   
• Exempt hospices from the increase in Employer’s National Insurance Contributions, which has placed unsustainable financial pressure on already struggling providers.
   
• Tackle staffing shortages through a dedicated hospice workforce plan, cutting vacancy rates and ensuring hospices have the skilled staff they need to deliver high quality care.
   
• Establish a sustainable financial footing for hospices through a new commission, creating a fair and consistent funding model integrated with the wider NHS and care system.
   
• Support families and the bereaved by expanding access to bereavement counselling and therapy, available from the point of diagnosis.

Hospices already care for around 300,000 people each year, but just one third of their funding comes from the NHS. Many clinical costs are met instead by charitable donations – leaving patients’ dignity at the mercy of fundraising capacity.

NHS spending on hospices varies wildly across the country, from over £10 per head in some areas to just 23p in others. This broken, incoherent model undermines services and leaves families without the support they need.

Liberal Democrats would fix this.

A sustainable funding model, backed by fair commissioning, would save money as well as improving care. Palliative care provided in the community or by hospices costs far less than hospital-based care, and studies have shown that services like those run by Marie Curie can save the NHS more than 50% compared with in-patient admission.

Properly funded hospices ease pressure on overstretched hospitals and deliver the care people want, where they want it.

By protecting and strengthening hospice services, we can ensure that everyone has the dignity, comfort and support they deserve at the end of life.