THE surging cost of food and staff salaries combined with growing demand for care and a dip in cash from fundraising are putting the hospices serving south Essex under serious financial pressure.

Bosses at Havens hospices, which supports both Fair Havens in Southend and Little Havens in Thundersley, have echoed concerns from the charity Hospice UK highlighting major financial struggles faced by hospices up and down the country.

Hospice UK has called on the Government to “provide cash urgently” after analysis showed hospices will need £120million to match upcoming NHS pay rises.

Havens hospices’ chief executive, Steve Smith, says the hospices may have to set a “deficit budget” and revealed the “statutory” funding currently received by the Government is not enough to keep pace with health service pay rises.

The charity, which spends £124,000 a week to provide specialist care, say they have money in reserves to cover the gap but are desperate for more support to ensure that income is best spent supporting patients and families.

Mr Smith said: “There is a growing demand for our hospice care, and our food and staffing bills are increasing, but there are signs that fundraising income is declining - both the number of people who can afford to donate to our charity and the amount they’re able to give.

“That means that over the coming 12 months, we are planning a ‘deficit’ budget. The money we have in reserves will cover the gap. This is very common for charities, and almost all hospices across the UK will be doing the same.

“Havens Hospices receives statutory funding, which equates to around 20 per cent of our total income. But as we’re committed to paying our care teams a fair wage in line with their NHS colleagues, this statutory contribution isn’t enough to keep pace with yearly NHS pay rises.”

Most hospice expenditure - 71 per cent - is spent on staff, with hospices recruiting from the same pool of staff as the health service. This means they must try to match NHS salaries to attract and retain nurses, healthcare assistants, physiotherapists, and other workers.

Mr Smith added: “We’re not yet at the stage where our care services are at risk, but we do have to ensure that our income is best spent on supporting those patients and families who need us. A sustainable model for funding quality hospice care will mean that we can support more families who deserve the best care throughout their whole life’s journey.”