BARNSLEY HOSPICE

Barnsley Hospice is, and will always be, one of the brightest jewels in Barnsley’s crown.

But it’s not an understatement to say the venue struggled during the pandemic. In the middle of the pandemic, the service was plunged into the Care Quality Commission’s ‘inadequate’ category, placing it in special measures.

It was mainly down to the struggles Covid caused to bosses, with funding gaps clear - leaving the service needing to raise millions to keep it running. However, in 2023 the service rightfully regained its ‘outstanding’ rating - and it’s all down to the hard work of the staff and volunteers.

CQC inspectors - who released their report in January 2023 - praised the service for its ‘rapidly improved’ performance and said patients now benefited from outstanding care.

Its remarkable turnaround was lauded by the CQC’s Sarah Dronsfield, who inspected the hospice during its struggles.

She said: “When we returned we were extremely impressed by the substantial improvements the service had made since we last inspected.

“We previously found significant safety concerns regarding the service’s clinical assessment reviews, risk identification of patients, admission assessment processes and Covid-19 management.

“Staff have taken action to comply with these areas and we were delighted to see so many improvements and areas of outstanding practice across the service.

“People are now protected by a strong, comprehensive safety system and the team have a focus on openness, transparency and learning when things go wrong.

“People are truly respected and treated as individuals with staff going the extra mile to ensure their emotional and practical needs are always met. “Recent feedback showed that 100 per cent of people said their privacy and dignity was respected and staff were polite and treated them with courtesy.

“We are very pleased to award the service an outstanding rating and the whole team deserve to be congratulated for all their hard work and commitment.”

In the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic it was revealed that the hospice was facing losses of up to £2,300 per day, causing a huge shortfall for the service.

This, coupled with the furthering effects of the pandemic, had a knock-on impact on its ability to deliver a high-level service to patients, according to former chief executive Julie Ferry, who was replaced by Martine Tune in late 2021.

Ms Tune said: “We are delighted - the last couple of years have been extremely challenging for the hospice and I am incredibly proud of how the team have pulled together to ensure the necessary steps were taken to improve our service.

“Providing the best specialist palliative and end-oflife care for our community is at the heart of what we do, and will continue to be the driving force for us moving forward.

“We are committed to ensuring that our service remains outstanding whilst looking for ways to continue improving, and raise the vital funds required to sustain the hospice.

“I would like to thank our wonderful local community for their continued support.”

Barnsley Hospice should forever be revered as one of the best institutes across the borough. No one ever doubted the care the hospice were given, and for years to come they’ll be doing their level best to help each and every one of us if and when we need it.