Acorns hospice beds to re-open in £1m boost

Nov 1 2006

THE Midlands-based Acorns Childrens Hospice is to re-open 12 beds after receiving a £1 million cash injection from the Government.

The organisation,which runs three hospices in Walstead Road, Walsall, Oaktree Lane, Selly Oak and Bath Road, Worcester, had to close four beds at each earlier this year after lottery funding ceased, reducing its overall number to 18.

The Department of Health has now announced that as part of a national package for hospices, Acorns will receive £1 million annually for the next three years. The number of beds overall at the three sites will be restored to 30.

John Overton, Acorns' chief executive, said today: "The money is mainly to replace the financial support lost when the three year National Lottery funding ended last April.

"It will allow Acorns to recruit the care staff necessary to reopen the beds that we were obliged to close.

"This is great news for the hundreds of children and their families that we care for across the West Midlands and Three Counties."

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