St Michael's Chief Executive has welcomed the announcement by Chancellor Rishi Sunak that a £750m fund had been set aside to help charities during the coronavirus crisis. Many charities in the Harrogate district have seen huge falls in revenue with their shops shut and fundraising activities postponed. 

The chancellor earmarked £360m of the money to charities "that were on the frontline of fighting the coronavirus", such as the hospice.

St Michael's needs £6m a year to run the hospice which cares for people living with terminal illness and its bereavement service- it traditionally gets little government money and is reliant on donations, shop revenue and fundraising activity to operate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saint Michael’s Hospice Chief Executive Tony Collins said:

As well as keeping its traditional services running to alleviate pressure on the NHS, the hospice's bereavement service Just B, has a new helpline for those feeling anxious or struggling with their emotional wellbeing during this crisis. Hear to Help is available to everyone between 8am-8pm, seven days a week, and is staffed by specialist support workers. The number to ring is (01423) 856 799.

The hospice is also supporting the national NHS mental health hotline for staff. The phone number is 0300 131 7000 or staff can text FRONTLINE to 85258. Lines are open from 07:00 to 23:00 every day,