Grant to help hospice hygiene standards

A regional housebuilder has helped a local hospice meet the cost of maintaining its highest hygiene standards and protecting patients by naming it a Community Champion and awarding £1,000.

Hospiscare, which provides specialist palliative care to communities in Exeter, Mid and East Devon, each year supporting more than 2,000 patients was recognised by Persimmon Homes South West and its Community Champions scheme.

Carey Mckenzie, for Hospiscare, said: “Our ward patients are very poorly, and one of the fundamental requirements of good care is impeccable hygiene and infection control.

“This means that consumption of disposable wipes on the ward is very high, because of the need to reduce the likelihood of bacterial spread. We are currently using over £1800 per month for these resources.

“Maintaining hygiene in a hospice ward has never been so important, with the risk of Covid-19 and necessary service adaptations which include greater PPE for all staff and an extended cleaning routine, we are using even more resources than we would usually.

“This is during a period of economic strain and the charity estimates a loss of £1million in income over the next three months due to cancelled events and fewer donations, so we are all grateful Persimmon Homes chose us as their Community Champions.”

Stacey Harris, head of sales at Persimmon Homes South West, said: “Hospiscare provides such a vital service for patients and their families and we were glad we were able to help out under such extreme circumstances.”

“Persimmon Homes South West has had a fantastic response to its Community Champions scheme and we are always keen to support the communities in which we build.”

The housebuilder’s national match-funding programme Community Champions seeks to support groups and charities working to improve the quality of life for local people.

Each month the Exeter-based builder donates up to £2,000 to community groups across the region. This also happens across Persimmon’s other 31 operating areas, meaning up to £64,000 is dished out every single month – a total of £768,000 a year.

However, as the nation continues to experience the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak, the housebuilder feels that, at the moment, elderly communities are in the most need of support. The change of direction came into effect from April.

Organisations can apply for funding by completing a simple online form at www.persimmonhomes.com/charity