A new hospice facility near Lichfield has been officially opened by the Duke of Kent.
The £8.5million Compassus Centre at St Giles Hospice in Whittington was built to meet increasing demand for the specialist care which is provided for people with cancer and other serious illnesses.
Peter Holliday, the hospice’s chief executive, escorted the Duke on a tour of the new facility, which features 17 private rooms with en-suite bathrooms and three wards.
Peter said:
“We were delighted to welcome His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent and our invited guests to the official opening of the Compassus Centre. This was a fantastic occasion, marking an achievement which has been made possible by the amazing generosity of the communities which we serve.
“His Royal Highness was very impressed with the state-of-the-art facilities, comfortable surroundings and caring support provided for our patients and their families at the centre.”
The first 18 beds at the Compassus Centre opened in May last year to replace St Giles’ former In-Patient Unit, and Katie’s Appeal was launched to raise £2m to equip the centre’s nine remaining beds and to cover three years’ running costs.
Donations from the hospice’s supporters across the region helped fund the opening of two more beds in December and a further bed in March, bringing the total number available to 21, and the appeal is continuing with the target of opening the final seven beds as soon as possible.
Peter added:
“We hope that people will continue to give generously to their local hospice to help us in the push to achieve our ultimate goal, which is to provide our specialist care and support for even more local people by ensuring the Compassus Centre can operate to its full potential.”
Further information on how to support Katie’s Appeal is available by visiting the St Giles Hospice website at www.stgileshospice.com, by calling 01543 432538 or emailing jenni.dawson@st-giles-hospice.org.uk.
