Financial hardship is something that affects many people who are living with a life-limiting illness as well as their families. Whilst the issue predates the current cost of living crisis, we are preparing to deal with more hardship this winter than the last as a result of the soaring fuel and energy prices as well as high inflation adding to everyones basic shopping. Those with young families are already prioritising feeding their children over their own medication or food.

Last winter, our community team including community nurses, Hospice@Home healthcare assistants and social workers visited patients at home only to find that they had no food in their cupboards, that there was no hot water or heating, or that they were sleeping on mattresses on the floor. Some of our patients didnt come in for their therapies or missed counselling sessions because they simply could not prioritise travel over heating their homes or putting food on the table. Family carers were stressed and tired as they were not receiving additional help at home or benefitting from much-needed carer respite.

It is through this community outreach that we can more easily assess how our patients and their family members are living and the additional support they may require. These visits can also provide companionship and ensure that our patients and their families do not feel alone in their situation or isolated from their community, feelings which can heighten as the days grow darker and colder.

As winter draws nearer, we must rapidly expand these community services so that we can better support our current patients and their families and reach many more people in our community who need our support.

But to do this, we need you.

How your support can help

£10 could help us to provide nutritious food and drinks throughout the day for a patient visiting our Day Care Unit, ensuring that they are getting a hot meal throughout the cold winter months.

£30 could provide an at-home visit from a social worker who can provide emotional and practical support as well as issue emergency hardship grants to help with food, hot water, heating and electricity bills as the winter sets in.

£50 could fund a weekly shop for a patient who is being cared for at home, ensuring that they have enough food in their cupboards as the cost of basic essentials increases.

Radia's story

Your gift will enable us to reach, connect and support people just like Radia and their family out in the community.

"Last month our fridge just stopped working out of the blue and we just didnt have the sort of money needed to buy a new one. The fridge plays a very important role in family life right now, it allows for some level of continuity. With so many medical appointments, I need to cook for the week, and I leave the meals in the fridge so that there is something healthy and home-cooked for my children and my husband to eat. When our St John's Social Worker visited us at home and saw we were without one they were able to release emergency funds so that we could buy a new one. I cannot even put into words how grateful I was for this additional help and how quickly it was all sorted. It saved us." - Radia.

Get in touch

Were here to help. If you have any questions about the ways you can give and the impact your gift can have, please get in touch by emailing fundraising@hje.org.uk or calling us on 020 7806 4011.

If you would like to donate by post, you can send us your cash or a cheque made out to 'St Johns Hospice' to: Fundraising Department, St Johns Hospice, 60 Grove End Road , London NW8 9NH.