St Kentigern Hospice has been given the go-ahead for a £2 million project that will see the hospice significantly extend its day therapy; inpatient facilities and enhance its community provision.
The St Asaph-based hospice hopes that work will begin by early next year. The project is to be carried out in two phases and is set to be complete by the middle of 2019.
The development involves an enlargement and improvement of the hospice’s day therapy and inpatient facilities, which will increase the bed provision from 8 to 12. The expansion will also include a café which will be open to the public as well as offering a relaxing area for patients and visitors.
“Like any progressive organisation, St Kentigern Hospice needs to remain responsive to the changing needs of the community that it was established to serve, and we need to ensure our facilities always match the changing needs and expectations of our patients” said the charity’s Chief Executive Iain Mitchell.
“Under the plans, we will create more space and bespoke facilities for our day therapy, family support services and inpatients unit. We are adapting to the needs of our community and we look forward to having the facilities available for more to access our high quality provision of care.”
So too is the hospices newly appointed Chairman, Jim O’Toole who said he was overjoyed that the charity would be expanding.
“St Kentigern is at the heart of the North Wales community and has provided vital help to so many thousands of people over the years,” he explained.
“Our plans to ensure we are ready for the future of hospice care have been bolstered this week as planning permission is granted. We are absolutely delighted that planning permission has been granted for the site, this is an important step in making our strategic care ambition a reality”.
Mr O’Toole stepped into the position of Hospice Chairman at their recent AGM on 2 October. He will be replacing Trefor Jones who led the hospice well, through 7 years – from financial difficulty to an organisation looking ahead to a positive future of palliative care for North Wales. During the AGM the hospice team reported great successes for the charity including the clinical accomplishment of appointing the first Consultant Nurse in Wales and expansion of the nursing team and the fore mentioned exciting prospect of the hospice expansion thanks to the continuous generosity of the community in their donations over the years.