The hospice care sector supports more than 200,000 people with terminal or life-limiting conditions in the UK each year. Treatment can span across a wide-range of conditions from cancer and motor neurone diseases to multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. Despite the fantastic care these hospices provide to people living with a condition and their families, government funding is being cut each year.

This year Vantage Consulting has chosen Staffordshire charity, Katharine House Hospice as its partner for 2018/2019. Providing a safe space for patients and their families, Katharine House supports people with life-limiting illnesses at their day therapy unit and in-patient unit in Stafford, as well as off-site in people’s homes.

With the total cost approaching £3,000,000 each year to run, the hospice has to raise two thirds of its funds through donations. Russell Jones, MD of Vantage Consulting says: “The work Katharine House Hospice does is incredible. The charity doesn’t just provide a safe and supportive place for people living with a life-limiting illness, but they have ample facilities for friends and families – whether that’s emotional support through the counselling team or simply providing a welcoming environment for them to spend time with loved ones – there’s even a
fully furnished flat above the hospice so anyone can stay over in comfort.”

“When we met with the team, we just knew it was a charity that we had to get involved with. Being just down the road, we know the impact that Katharine House has on the local community and we wanted to do everything we could to support them. That’s why we’ve set ourselves a challenging target to raise £7,000 – the total cost to run the hospice and all its services for 24 hours.”

The team at Vantage have set themselves a number of challenges throughout the year to hit their target, including a spin bike challenge next month that’ll see them cycle the distance (roughly 850miles) from Land’s End to John O’Groats on spin bikes in 1 working day.

Charity Sponsor and Business Manager at Vantage, Kate Wills said: “The spin bike fundraiser is going to be a gruelling challenge, but that’s just the start of it. We’ve got a lot more planned to raise as much as we can for the hospice over the next year. We’re also going to be running volunteer sessions so our consultants can go and help Katharine House with day-to-day tasks, be it planting the new Celebration Garden that they’re currently renovating, painting or anything else they need
us to do. We understand that sometimes, time can be just as important of a contribution as money.”