St Barnabas Hospices and Martlets announce merger: Everything you need to know

St Barnabas Hospices, which already incorporates St Barnabas House and Chestnut Tree House in West Sussex, will merge with Martlets Hospice in Brighton and Hove – to ‘enhance patient care’ and ‘provide sustainable hospice care for the future’.

All three hospices will continue to operate under their existing names and identities but will be run by a group leadership team. This will be ‘put in place imminently’.

A spokesperson for St Barnabas Hospices said: “[This will] create a stronger, more sustainable and comprehensive hospice care organisation that is committed to delivering outstanding patient care across the communities we serve.”

Amanda Fadero, CEO, said of the merger, said all involved are ‘excited about the possibilities and opportunities’ that this merger brings and ‘look forward to continuing our shared mission’ of providing ‘outstanding hospice care to those that need it’.

She added: “Together, we will build a stronger foundation for compassionate palliative and end of life care in our communities.”

Jenny Mark-Bell, PR executive of St Barnabas House and Chestnut Tree House, penned a column for this newspaper.

She wrote: “At St Barnabas, every decision we make and every action we take has the patient at its heart. We are so grateful to have held a special place in our community for more than 50 years.

"Now, our priority is ensuring that the support we give to local people will continue for the next 50 years – all while continuing to offer the outstanding care we’re known for in the community.

“I’m proud to tell you that this week, we have announced a merger between St Barnabas Hospices and Martlets – the hospice for Brighton and Hove. In doing so, we aim to create a stronger, more sustainable, and comprehensive hospice care organisation that is committed to delivering outstanding patient care across the communities.

"As many of you will know, we already have a sister hospice – Chestnut Tree House, the children’s hospice in Arundel – and this exciting step means that we’ll benefit from the collective strengths and expertise of all three hospices.

"This is a significant milestone in the sector, which will help provide sustainable hospice care for the future. By merging, we hope to achieve greater efficiency while improving access to specialist palliative and end-of-life care.

“We are excited about the possibilities and opportunities that this merger brings. We believe we are better together and look forward to building a stronger foundation for compassionate palliative and end-of-life care in our communities.”

For more information, visit www.stbh.org.uk/news.