Hospiscare has moved its Tiverton ‘home’ to a new site in the centre of town.
The new centre is named Holly Tree Place, a name chosen by our Tiverton community nursing team, who drew on a tree theme to link to the Hospiscare logo and to acknowledge the legacy of our previous facility on the outskirts of Tiverton, Pine Lodge. The centre is located on 17 Market Walk, in the former Co-op building that is already home to our Tiverton charity shop.
The exterior of Hospiscare’s new Tiverton centre, Holly Tree Place
The new town-centre facility replaces Pine Lodge, Hospiscare’s previous facility on Post Hill, which first operated as a day hospice centre for patients with terminal illnesses, and then an office base for our community nurses. The opening of Pine Lodge in 2011 was made possible by the generosity of local supporters, who collectively raised £150,000.
Fourteen years on, we have now moved our nursing team to the centre of Tiverton to provide easier access to our services for Hospiscare patients, and their carers and loved ones.
Local Hospiscare patient, Charlotte Snow (centre) cuts the ribbon on the hospice’s new town centre clinic, Holly Tree Place, accompanied by her husband Alan and her hospice nurse, Rebecca Garnsworthy.
The new site was officially opened by local resident and patient, Charlotte Snow, and her Hospiscare nurse, Rebecca Garnsworthy, who cut the red ribbon on the building on Wednesday 2 April.
Ms Snow says: “The hospice staff are angels as far as I’m concerned. They do such a wonderful job. You cannot find a better charity that’s going to help people out, especially when you’re really poorly and you need that care and attention. The hospice is always going to be there for you.”
The new location at Market Walk offers improved transport links and access by foot, bus and car, with bus stops and public car parks close by. Services offered at the site will include outpatient appointments with palliative care specialists; symptom management clinics; bereavement support; and legal advice sessions, as well as end-of-life training for healthcare professionals, and meeting and office space for staff.
A patient consultation room at Holly Tree Place
The move will also save more than £50,000 per year for our charity.
Wayne Gale, Interim Chief Executive of Hospiscare, explains: “Moving our Mid Devon hospice site to Market Walk is a great opportunity to improve access to our care for our patients and their loved ones. We already operate the building in Market Walk and it’s also home to our Tiverton hospice charity shop, which raises vital funds for our end-of-life care. This move to a more convenient central location means we can benefit our patients and be more cost efficient.”
Ann Rhys, Clinical Director for Hospiscare, adds: “As a local charity, so much of what we do is only possible with the support of our brilliant local community. We’re grateful to everyone in the community who has contributed in so many ways to the success of our former site at Post Hill – from those who helped raise the funds to open it, to volunteers who helped support our patients there.
“In recent years, the needs of our patients have changed significantly, and it’s no longer optimal to have our services run from a site as large, and as far from town. Our new location at Market Walk is much better served by transport links, and patients will be able to more readily access a range of services from our specialist staff.”
