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Write to your local MP today

You can help us by writing a letter to your local MP

A rear view of Russell House taken from the garden on a sunny day.
A bubble light tube glowing red in the sensory room, with a small child's hands holding the tube.

Why we need your help

With hospices across the country in financial crisis, Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice is facing a number of serious challenges.

Just 10% of our funding comes from the NHS, meaning we rely on the generosity of our local community to raise the other 90%. But as our costs continue to rise, the ongoing cost-of-living crisis is making it harder than ever for our supporters to donate, volunteer, and back our fundraising efforts.

We’re calling for a fairer and more sustainable funding model for hospices like Forget Me Not. Only with a properly structured and reliable funding system can we have the security we need to plan ahead—protecting our vital services and ensuring children and families continue to receive the care they rely on.

You can support us by writing to your local MP to highlight the scale of the crisis facing Forget Me Not. It only takes a few minutes, and we’ve put together a simple guide below to make it easy.

The back of a young girl with curly blonde hair and a pink t-shirt as she hits a musical instrument made of large metal pipes with a beater in the garden. Russell House is in the background.

Three easy steps to writing to your MP

  1. Copy and paste the email template below into a new email.
  2. Use the UK Parliament website to find your local MP and their email address.
  3. Send the email to your local MP (or send a letter in the post if you prefer). If you’d like to write your own letter, to highlight the challenges facing Forget Me Not, please do.

This is your chance to be part of a national push for change for hospices all across the country.

Find your local MP

Email template for you to send to your MP:

Dear (insert name of your local MP),

I’m a supporter of Forget Me Not children’s hospice, a charity delivering outstanding care and support to local children with life-shortening conditions, their families, and bereaved families across West Yorkshire.

I am saddened and deeply concerned to hear that the vital support they provide for families—who would otherwise have to face the loss of their child alone—is at risk due to rising costs and a lack of long-term, multi-year statutory funding.

Forget Me Not announced in December that they needed to reduce their annual costs by 12% (£750,000) to bridge the funding gap they face. They also launched an urgent appeal to raise £1 million by the end of March.

Inevitably, cutting costs will have an impact on the care they’re able to provide. For families who rely on Forget Me Not’s clinical and respite care to help them manage the 24/7 challenges of caring for a child with a complex health condition, this is devastating news.

This is not an issue unique to Forget Me Not—hospices across the UK, both adult and children’s, are facing similar financial pressures. Rising energy costs, increasing employer contributions such as National Insurance, and the broader cost-of-living crisis are all exacerbating the situation. Without urgent action, hospices will struggle to continue providing the essential care that so many families rely on.

The recent announcement of £100 million in additional funding for hospices is to be welcomed, but it is restricted to capital spend and cannot be used to support the everyday running costs that keep these services going. At Forget Me Not, 78% of these costs are staffing-related—paying for the nurses, bereavement support teams, and medical professionals who provide direct care and emotional support to children and families every single day. Hospices are not only a crucial part of the healthcare system, but they are also a cost-effective one, ensuring families receive the care they need in the community rather than in hospital settings.

Shockingly, only around 10% of Forget Me Not’s funding comes from the government or NHS. This means they rely on supporters like me to raise the other 90% of the £6 million they need to open the hospice doors every year. I am proud to do my bit, but it can’t be right that such an integral part of the local healthcare system is sustained by bucket collections and charity shops.

I am urging you to support the call for a comprehensive, multi-year funding commitment for hospices like Forget Me Not. Without this, hospices will remain in a cycle of financial uncertainty, unable to plan for the future and forced to make difficult decisions that could leave vulnerable families without the care and support they so desperately need.

Thank you for your attention.