Lottery reverses cash ban on babies' hospices

BY SIMON CALDWELL
LOTTERY chiefs have overturned a decision to deny grants to two children's hospices linked to a pro-life charity.
Zoe's Place in West Derby, Liverpool, and Zoe's No.2 in Middlesbrough, run by the LIFE charity, were the only children's hospices from 25 nationwide to be denied a grant by the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) in January.
But since their cases were highlighted in The Catholic Herald, the NOF, which administers money on behalf the National Lottery, reversed its decision and awarded the hospices the full amount they asked for.
Zoe's Place in Liverpool will now receive £273,000 toward securing new staff to help to continue and improve care for children up to the age of five years.
Zoe's No.2 will receive £600,115 toward the costs of a five cot hospice for children of the same age range.
Baroness Jill Pitkeathley, chairwoman of the NOF, said: "We are delighted to be able to announce this funding which will help to provide specialised care for seriously ill babies and young children.
"Very young children need tailored care and we are confident that Zoe's Place can provide this.” Professor Jack Scarisbrick, the chairman of Zoe's Place Trust, hailed the decision as "wonderful news".
He said: "We were so disappointed when our bids were initially turned down, but now additional funding has become available from the NOF and our prayers are answered. We very much appreciate what Baroness Pitkeathley says, that very small sick children need special provision. On behalf of the Zoe's children, parents and staff I say a very big thank you."
He added: "I would also like to thank The Catholic Herald very much indeed for its powerful intervention on our behalf.
"I think they [the NOFI came under a lot of pressure from all kinds of well-wishers around the place but The Catholic Herald was the most powerful single voice."
The hospices were denied grants because they cared for children only up to the age of five years, rather than 18 years. Because of this, the NOF found that the bids did not meet agreed criteria and denied the Zoe's Places a share of a £15.3 million windfall for children's hospices. The other applicants each received grants averaging £620,000. Professor Scarisbrick said he later registered a formal complaint with the NOF, setting out grounds for an appeal.
He said the breakthrough came when Baroness Pitkeathley accepted that Zoe's Places were pioneering a new kind of hospice for very young children.
As The Catholic Herald went to press, the only Zoe's Place workers to have been told the news were hospice manager Anne Johnson and Robert Griffin, the general manager.
Mrs Johnson said: "We are absolutely thrilled. When we got told the other day it was as if the sun started to shine again. It was brilliant there is a God."
Mr Griffin added: "I was quite surprised but we never . doubted our cause, we never gave up. We were very disappointed when we received the news that our bids had been refused but we battled on, as we always had done."
The grants were part of an overall £70 million scheme to support people "coping with life-limiting illnesses and develop existing palliative care services for adults and children, particularly in areas with low access to community palliative care and with high levels of deprivation".