Home

Status of the in-patient unit at the Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool

Published: 13 Mar 2025
Updated: 2 Jul 2025
Share
We want the people of Liverpool to have the most accurate and up-to-date information about the in-patient unit at the Marie Curie Hospice in Woolton and we want to thank everyone for their continued support during this difficult time.

What's happening at Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool

  • We have been unable to secure the sustainable funding needed from the Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB) and as such Marie Curie has taken the difficult decision to close the inpatient unit at its Liverpool hospice permanently.  
  • We greatly regret that we can’t reopen the unit and recognise this will be extremely difficult news for patients, employees, volunteers and the local community. 
  • Our priority now is to support those staff who have been informed they are at risk of redundancy, together with all other staff and volunteers who work tirelessly to deliver superb care and who will also be affected by this decision. 
  • It is our intention that with the continued support of the ICB, the hospice and Marie Curie will continue to deliver all our other services for the people of Liverpool, including outpatient care and hospice care at home services as well as remaining a base for Marie Curie’s North West team.  If you need care or support there are many ways to contact us - please see here.

Why has Marie Curie made the decision to close the in-patient unit?

Marie Curie has a financial operating deficit; in that it costs more to run our services than the total income from fundraising and the NHS. This isn’t sustainable and across the UK Marie Curie has to make difficult choices to ensure its financial sustainability.  
  • It costs £6.4m to run the hospice every year. Currently 39% of the hospices running costs are funded by the Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB) which buys NHS services for the Liverpool region. A further 5% comes from direct funding from organisations like universities who fund medic training. The majority of the remaining funding comes from donations to Marie Curie raised right across the UK
  • To reopen the inpatient unit, we would need to agree a sustainable, long-term funding plan with the ICB to meet the rising costs of running the unit. Regrettably, despite efforts by both parties, they can’t currently commit to that. However, both Marie Curie and the ICB have agreed to continue to work in partnership to find a longer-term solution for palliative and end of life care in Liverpool, including inpatient beds.  
  • While we recognise the hard choices the ICB faces in meeting demand for care at every life stage with stretched budgets, with our own costs increasing, we can’t reopen the unit without assurances of future NHS funding to meet the rapidly rising costs. 
  • We appreciate the generous support of the people of Liverpool, who have raised £2.6 million over the past three years. We can’t continue to bridge the funding gap nor expect them to help close it.  
  • The hospice building would require significant redevelopment for us to be able to meet modern standards and provide safe care in the future as well as privacy and dignity for those at the end of life. 

Our other services supporting people living with a terminal illness

All other services in Liverpool are operating as normal and we continue to support people with a terminal illness or at the end of life.
Our outpatient service at the hospice is fully staffed and operational and our community services providing care and psychological support for patients in the last few months of their life continue. Our Patient and Family Support team continue supporting people and we have a free Support Line which operates seven days a week.
Last year working alongside our local NHS partners, we introduced new services to provide end of life care for more people at home. Our Enhanced Hospice Care at Home service (which the NHS refers to as Virtual ward) provides specialist care to people at home from experts including nurses, doctors and other health professionals. People who would have been considered for in-patient admission are still being referred to us and assessed for their suitability for enhanced hospice care at home. This is an in-person service and is not a telephone line.
If you're currently caring for someone who is dying, please contact our IMPACT service on 0300 100 1002 who will provide support or a referral to the services you need. All our services can be contacted through this IMPACT service.
Marie Curie also has a free Support Line. Open 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday, and 10am to 4pm Saturday to Sunday.
  • Telephone: 0800 090 2309
  • Email: support@mariecurie.org.uk
  • Online chat: click on the bubble icon on the bottom right of the web page.
Published: 13 Mar 2025
Updated: 2 Jul 2025
Share

We’re here for you

Share this page

©2025 Marie Curie. Registered Charity, England and Wales (207994), Scotland (SC038731). Registered company limited by guarantee, England & Wales (507597). Registered Office: One Embassy Gardens, 8 Viaduct Gardens, London SW11 7BW

online