7 October 2011
Hospice says NO to the new Health Lottery!
Hospice leaders are concerned that the new Health Lottery will deprive seriously ill local patients of the vital care services they depend on from their local hospice.
Keech Hospice Care, which supports adults in the Luton and south Bedfordshire area, and children across Milton Keynes, Luton, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, is completely reliant on the £700,000 generated each year by its own fund-raising lottery.
Now the hospice fears its support for those with life limiting conditions could be compromised if their supporters choose to play the new Health Lottery instead of the Keech Lottery.
Jacqui Shepherd, Fundraising Director at Keech Hospice Care, said: “Playing the Health Lottery might sound like a good idea for those who wish to support good causes, but the fact is it will only donate 20p to charity for every £1 spent on tickets — just a fraction above the minimum amount required by law.
“And because it’s a national initiative, players will never be sure exactly who they will be supporting with the money they give to the Health Lottery.The Keech Lottery has more than 65p in every £1 supporting local adults and children people, so players can rest assured that their money is being well spent in their own community.
“We’re extremely concerned about the potential to lose funding to this new Health Lottery and would ask our very loyal supporters to stay with us and choose to play the Keech Lottery.
“Our weekly lottery is an essential source of income for Keech, raising 20% per cent of the money we need each year to provide our free specialist care services for local people. We depend on the generosity of our community for 75% of the £5m+ it costs to give the essential care and services to those who have life limiting conditions. It’s for this reason that we’re urging people who care about their local hospice to say ‘yes’ to supporting the Keech Lottery and “no” to the Health Lottery.”
Keech Hospice Care is not alone. It has joined with other national hospices to say "‘No' to The Health Lottery" and the campaign is being supported by Help the Hospices, the national charity for hospice care.
David Praill, chief executive of Help the Hospices, said: “In these already challenging times, we are very concerned that this new lottery could have a serious impact on the vital funds generated by the hospice lotteries that take place every week across the UK.
“Hospices are local charities rooted in the communities they serve, and although hospice care is free for seriously ill people and their families, it is not free to provide, and collectively hospices have to raise more than £500 million every year.”
The Keech lottery costs £1 per week to play, and has raised more than £6 million for hospice care since it was established in 1996.
Why not join the Keech Lottery today instead? You could be walking away with the top prize next week. Joining is really easy and for £1 a week you can really make a difference to local families. Please help us by downloading and completing the application form on the website at www.keech.org.uk/joinourlottery or by calling our lottery hotline on 01582 497814 and paying by credit/debit card.
