Martin House Children’s Hospice, which provides specialist palliative care to children and young people with life-shortening conditions, launched its largest fundraising appeal to date on Friday with charity ambassador, Gareth Southgate.
The charity’s ambassador and manager of England’s national men’s football team broke ground on its ambitious new project, ‘THE BUILD’, urging the public to donate towards its £2 million target by the winter 2025 deadline.
Gareth was joined at the event by families who use and have used Martin House, and CEO of the hospice, Clair Holdsworth.
The £21.9 million project, named ‘THE BUILD’, is set to be complete by winter 2025, and will enable Martin House to continue to support children, young people and their families for many years to come. These plans have been created in collaboration with the families using the hospice, including the children themselves, to ensure their needs are front and centre of the project.
Gareth Southgate said: “I’m always humbled when I visit Martin House, the hospice is a lifeline for local families, and it really does transform the lives of young people with life-shortening conditions every single day.
“I’m honoured to have worked closely with the hospice for several years now and urge people to donate any amount they feel comfortable with to support THE BUILD. These improvements will strengthen the hospice’s existing services and guarantee its future, helping to enrich experiences for the entire family.”
Martin House celebrated its first milestone donation during the private fundraising phase last year, after receiving a lead gift of £3million from The Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation, a major foothold in the path towards delivering THE BUILD.
THE BUILD will consist of two phases: phase 1 featuring a children’s wing and phase 2 comprising a teenager’s wing, wellbeing and education centre.
Phase one’s children’s wing will include nine enchanted forest-themed bedrooms with piped oxygen, integrated hoists and access to the private garden. Alongside this are two cooled bedroom suites where children are cared for after death, to allow families time to say goodbye and receive much needed emotional support.
Phase two’s teenage wing has six ensuite bedrooms and will create a social space for young people. Phase two’s education centre will keep Martin House at the forefront of paediatric palliative care with adaptable spaces to facilitate training for healthcare professionals across the region, implementing a collaborative approach to palliative care for children across all settings.
The wellbeing centre will include a hydrotherapy and sensory pool, day therapy space, consulting rooms and a state-of-the-art sensory room with immersive cinema experience.
Bethany and Jack Harrison, parents of Thomas, three, who uses Martin House, said: “Martin House is a lifeline to us, we don’t know what we’d do without it. We are looking forward to all the new facilities the Build will bring. We’ve never been able to take Thomas swimming because it would be too much to manage in a normal pool, so we can’t wait for him to experience the new hydrotherapy pool, as he loves water.
“Thomas also needs oxygen at night, and currently we have to get bottles delivered to Martin House – having piped oxygen in his bedroom will make a huge difference to our stays.”
Clair added: “Martin House provides specialist paediatric palliative care across Yorkshire. Advances in medicine mean more children and young people with life shortening conditions are living for longer and with increasingly complex needs.
“Our building needs to be transformed to meet those changing needs, so over the next 18 months, we are asking the people of Yorkshire to help us raise £2 million, so we can complete this essential and ambitious £21.9m project, so please back THE BUILD.
“We understand that the current economic circumstances are tough for many people at the moment, and we would be grateful for any donations at all, no amount is too small, every penny will make a significant difference and go directly towards funding THE BUILD.”
Martin House is set to launch several fundraising events for the public to support THE BUILD in partnership with HARIBO.
Jon Hughes, managing director at HARIBO UK & Ireland, said: “The important work Martin House delivers to the community is true to our values of creating childlike happiness and memorable moments. HARIBO UK is honoured to have supported Martin House for over 15 years now. In that time, we’re proud to have played a part in fundraising campaigns and delighted to continue our partnership and be part of some exciting fundraising activity this year.”
Sign up to be a supporter, donate and keep updated on the charity’s latest news here: www.martinhouse.org.uk/thebuild
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Martin House has been providing family-led care and support for babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions for 35 years (life-limiting means the child or young person is not expected to live beyond young adulthood).
The hospice, based in Boston Spa, has nine bedrooms in Martin House, and six in Whitby Lodge, which cares for teenagers and young people. Our services include respite stays, symptom control, emergency care, community care and end of life care.
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