STAFF, patients and their families at St Clare Hospice in Hastingwood were celebrating recently following a grant of £5,235 from the Morrisons Foundation.

Thanks to the funding from the charitable arm of the supermarket, the hospice has been able to fully renovate its kitchen facility for their inpatient unit.

Julie Foster, Trust Fundraiser at St Clare Hospice said: “We are so grateful to the Morrisons Foundation for their generous donation, which will enable us to renovate the kitchen that families use when visiting loved ones being cared for in our Inpatient Unit.

“We want our patients and their families to feel at home and as comfortable as possible when they are with us and providing access to a well-equipped kitchen is very important. Food and sharing food is a big part of family life. We have patients and families that would love to prepare family favourite meals and snacks and being able to do this will make such a big difference.”

St Clare Hospice is the leading provider of specialist palliative care for residents of West Essex and East Herts providing care for more than 2,000 patients and their families each year. The hospice provides compassionate care and support through a range of clinical and non-clinical services including an Inpatient Unit, Hospice at Home and community nursing, outpatient services and counselling.

David Scott, Morrisons Foundation Trustee said: “I’m delighted that we’ve been able to support the vital work of St Clare Hospice. The charity is so well regarded in the local community for the care they provide to people with life limiting conditions and their families and carers from all across our region and I’m very proud that the Morrisons Foundation has been able to help their work in such a meaningful way.”

The Morrisons Foundation was set up by Morrisons supermarket in 2015 and awards grants for charity projects which help improve people’s lives. Since launching, over £44 million has been donated to hundreds of charities across England, Scotland and Wales.