Council donates £25,000 to Hospice

Following years of planning, research and consultation, NI Hospice is planning to build a new, state of the art adult hospice that meets the end of life care needs of the next generation.

‘Building for Life’ is an awareness campaign to help raise the final £2.6 million needed to rebuild the adult facility at Somerton Road in Belfast.

Ballymena Council is contributig a staggering £25,000 towards the rebuild project. Approval for funding support was finalised at committee level in March following a presentation of the Hospice’s development plans.

Deputy Mayor of Ballymena, Councillor Hubert Nicholl commented: “In recognition of the vital support the NI Hospice gives to those in need of palliative and end of life care, Ballymena Council have secured funding of £25,000 to assist the NI Hospice to proceed with the replacement of this much needed new facility.

“We all know someone in need of these vital services and the extraordinary care and commitment provided by all those working in this area should be commended; from those involved in funding and delivering services for NI Hospice through to the many selfless volunteers that give freely of their time. I would also like to commend the Hospice on their continuing fundraising activities through the innovative ‘buy a brick’ campaign.”

The purpose built hospice has been designed to care for people with complex care needs and the growing numbers of people in need of end of life care. A timeframe of 18 months has been set and it is expected that it will be open and operational in late 2015.

Margaret Butler, Treasurer of the Board of Trustees for NI Hospice, said: “We are so grateful to all our supporters in the Ballymena area that have backed us and provided invaluable support to help us rebuild a hospice that is equipped to deliver a first class service, to patients, families and the people of Northern Ireland today.”