Walsall FC are pleased to hear that the consultation on the proposal to close Walsall Acorns Children’s Hospice has been postponed.
The decision will allow the hospice to remain open until at the least the end of March 2020, offering care to local children and families.
This lifeline will also allow time for an urgent major public fundraising appeal to be launched to secure the longer-term future of the hospice. If the appeal is successful, it will lead to the closure proposal being withdrawn altogether.
The postponement of the consultation follows confirmation of additional NHS funding from the Black Country Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) Clinical Commissioning Groups for the Walsall hospice, as well as an announcement by NHS England that they will double their central funding to the country’s children’s hospices by 2024.
The significance of this new NHS England commitment is that it immediately creates the opportunity that if Acorns can find extra resources for the next few years until the full increase comes into effect, the charity will be able to maintain all three of its children’s hospices, including the service in Walsall, with long term confidence.
The financial situation at Acorns, however, remains fragile and therefore we are delighted to reaffirm our commitment to Acorns, who will be one of our charity partners for the 2019/20 season. A matchday will be dedicated to raising awareness for the charity, with a bucket collection, social media posts and programme and website articles.