Cheshire Independent Issue 187

MACCLESFIELD • TYTHERINGTON • BOLLINGTON ALDERLEY EDGE • PRESTBURY • WILMSLOW • HANDFORTH • POYNTON • BRAMHALL • DISLEY • ALSAGER • BIDDULPH • CONGLETON • SANDBACH ISSUE 187 FREE CHESHIRE FREE YOUR LOCAL GOOD NEWS-PAPER FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: @CheshireIndy www.independentnewspapers.co.uk Looking for Flooring Inspiration? Let us help you find the perfect flooring for your home. With great advice, home styling, measure and planning service, plus quality fitting of top brands and designs, youwill be glad you did . Visit our showroom: Tuesday to Saturday or call 01260 224445 for a private appointment Thornycroft Farm, Pexhill Road, Siddington, Cheshire SK11 9JN ● Modern, Traditional & Luxury Carpets ● Natural Wood Flooring ● Laminate Flooring ● Stair Runners & Rods ● Luxury Vinyl Tiles ● Bespoke Rugs & Runners EAST Cheshire Hospice has revealed it now needs to find a staggering £9,362 a day to keep its doors open. The daily cost represents a near 25 per cent increase on the previous figure of £7,500. The new total, calculated on aver- age costs over the last five years, excludes the 21 per cent of income received from government. That percentage has risen from 17 per cent but the charity says that it is still “well below” the 30 per cent hospices receive on average nationally from public funds. A new report has revealed that under pressure hospices across the UK are facing a £77million fund- ing deficit. East Cheshire’s slight rise in NHS support is due to the extra commu- nity services it now provides. The hospice has also calculated that a single overnight stay in its inpatient unit costs £740. The increases are due to a com- bination of factors. The cost of pro- viding care has gone up, as have energy bills and staff wages, with the hospice committed to matching NHS salaries. The cost of equipment and building maintenance has also risen as part of the nation’s cost-of-living crisis. The £7,500 figure needed daily also excluded the charity’s popular Hos- pice@Home service, which started in 2017. The total cost of running the hospice, which provides more services than ever before, is around £5.6mil- lion a year. Its newly modernised Sunflower Living Well Centre will have the capacity to support 400 individual and familymembers each week, more than twice the previous number. Importantly, the complex will allow more than one service to run at any one time, giving further scope to handle the changing complexity of healthcare needs. Rachel Allcock, the hospice’s income generation director, said: “The fact we need to raise £9,362 a day to run the hospice emphasises more than ever the need to continue to generate funds. “The amazing goodwill and gen- erosity of the public, our corporate supporters and our hard- working staff and volunteers keeps us going and we thank them sincerely for their ongoing support. “The model used to calculate our costs allows us to update the fig- ures easily. “We deliver a lot more services THE COST OF CARING £9,362 a day to keep hospice open Care: East Cheshire Hospice is providing more services than ever (Photo credit: ECH) than we did before so the sum we need to raise is far more up to date, reflecting the scale of the challenge we face in difficult economic times.” Cheshire business owner Ben Simpkin saw how he could help the hospice during visits to see his late father. He donated two sophisticated medical trolleys, products his com- pany supplies to hospitals and health centres. He felt it was the least he could do for the way they looked after his father, Howard, who died of pancre- atic cancer in September, aged 79. Ben is managing director of MS Group, a holding company trading also as Zarges Medical UK. It sup- plies the medical industry with fur- niture and storage equipment. Putting on a show! MACCLESFIELD is to getting ready to put on a show. A new summer festival will celebrate the town’s cre- ativity and community. The town council has unveiled plans for the major event which will take place in June. Called the 1261 Festival, it has been named after Macclesfield’s charter year. A big fes- tival weekend is planned, running from Friday June 28 until Sunday June 30, with a ‘One World Parade’ through the town on the Saturday one of its highlights. ! Continuedpage five He is following in the footsteps of his dad who set up the company in 1978 and lived in Adlington. Ben said: “The way the hospice cared for my dad was unbelievable. They couldn’t have done any more or been any nicer. I can’t repay them for what they did, but it made sense to help themwith any little contribution we can.” Helen Henshaw, manager of the Hospice’s Sunflower Living Well Centre, said: “Ben’s generosity not only honours his father’s memory but also contributes significantly to our ability to offer compassionate, high-quality care.”