'Ribbon-cutting events make positive headlines, but the real success is in quiet moments': Walsall hospice boss warns of funding crisis
Trevor Johnson is pleased with the Government's announcement of £906,000 to improve the buildings at Acorns children's hospice.
But from his first words, you can sense an impending 'however'.
"These funds will undoubtedly help improve facilities, upgrade equipment, and enhance the environments where care is delivered," he says.
"However, there's a reality that needs addressing: these grants don't pay for a single minute of what truly matters, the compassion and love that defines hospice care.
"Ribbon-cutting ceremonies at new facilities make for positive headlines, but the real measure of hospice success happens in quiet moments between care teams and families that require adequate staffing levels to achieve "
Mr Johnson, who took up the post as chief executive of Acorns two years ago, is mindful not to appear churlish about the grant the Government has provided. It will bring tangible benefits in terms of modern equipment and updated facilities.
"These improvements are genuinely valuable and needed," he says. "A hospice with outdated facilities or inadequate equipment cannot provide the best medical or supportive environment that children and families deserve when facing the darkest times in their lives."
But he also feels a sense of frustration at the lack of long-term funding which would help the hospice meet its long-term running costs.
