Garden House Hospice Care in Letchworth Garden City said it was facing a £750,000 funding gap in the current financial year despite cutting £1m from expenditure.

The hospice said it was facing a further £1.1m funding shortfall in the next financial year blaming reduced statutory NHS funding, falling charitable income from fundraising and trading activities, and an increase in costs from Minimum Wage and National Insurance contributions for its deficits.

A spokesperson said: ‘Hospices like ours have worked for years within a 30/70 funding model, reliant on charitable giving to fund more than two-thirds of our services. But with rising costs and a decline in donations, the situation has become critical.'

The hospice said it had reduced its inpatient beds from 12 to 8 due to lack of funding.

‘We expect to hear in October what funding we will receive for next year and we hope the seriousness of the situation will be recognised,' the spokesperson added.

Dr Jane Halpin, chief executive of Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB said: ‘Hospices play a vital role in our health and care system and the ICB works closely with them to ensure the right services are in place for our ageing population. We know that hospices face great financial pressures and need clarity on their funding in order to plan their valuable work in a sustainable way.

‘We recognise that hospices are also reliant on charitable donations from the public and that cost-of-living pressures have meant that donation levels have fallen in recent years. Core funding from the NHS for Garden House Hospice has not been reduced and we have committed to maintaining this year's core hospice funding levels, which will be enhanced by additional funding to help cover rising staffing costs once we know our overall ICB budgets later in the year.'

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘The Government recognises the incredible work that hospices do across the country and through our 10-Year Health Plan we are working to make sure the palliative and end of life care sector is sustainable, as we shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community.'

The Government announced a £126m funding package for hospices in December 2025.

The first £25m tranche of the £100m capital funding for adult hospices has been spent on capital projects with the remaining £75m allocated in July.