A CHARITY which provides hospice care in people’s homes says financial legacies left in wills has enabled it to offer a much better service.

Herriot Hospice Homecare says it is now more dependent than ever on donations from the community, after seeing its NHS funding cut by 70 per cent over the last few years.

The North Yorkshire charity recently received a number of significant legacies from local families, which has enabled it to:

•Launch a bereavement service offering confidential individual counselling or drop-in support to those who have suffered bereavement.

•Provide an overnight service, which enables specialist health care assistants to stay in the homes of people in the last few weeks or months of their lives

•Expanded its therapy service by adding hair, nail and chiropody services, as well as increasing the number of aromatherapy, acupuncture and reflexology sessions it is able to offer.

•Take leases on two charity shops and a second hand furniture and electrical warehouse.

As part of a wider fundraising initiative launched earlier this month, the charity, which has annual operating costs of £750,000 per year, is particularly keen to secure further legacy donations.

Karen Wilkinson-Bell, chief executive, said: “These legacy donations have enabled us to do so much good for people with life-limiting illnesses and with our NHS funding being slashed and a general reduction in charitable donations, it couldn’t have come at a more crucial time for the charity.

“We do, however, want to do so much more; such as building further on our end of life care service and establishing a day hospice outreach service.”

People and organisations interested in making legacy, or any other, donations can call 01609-777413.